Jonny Leonard, 1961 - 2010

Jonny Leonard was Director of Music at St Luke's Chelsea from 2000 until his untimely death on June 1 2010. He was instrumental in expanding the repertoire and activities of the choir, and built it up to an exceptional standard as one of the best voluntary choirs in London. Jonny's warmth and charisma made the choir a rewarding and friendly group with which to sing. We plan to celebrate his life in a concert at St Luke's, and also to buy a music stand as a permanent memorial to him.

On Saturday 23rd July, current and past members of St Luke's choir joined together to perform a memorial concert as a tribute to Jonny. The concert featured some of Jonny's favouirte music, including masterpieces by Tallis, Howells and Whitacre. We welcomed Jonny's family to St Luke's once more and the retiring collection of over £500 will go to a trust in Jonny's name at the Royal School of Church Music.

As a permanent memorial we have commissioned a conductor's stand for the church, to be hand crafted to our specifications by Luke Hughes & Co., a firm renowned for their beautiful creations. The wood and other materials will be chosen to complement St Luke's and will include a plaque and inscription to celebrate Jonny's life and work. Luke Hughes & Co. have created similar pieces for Rochester Cathedral (pictured to the right) and St George's Chapel Windsor. We aim to raise £5,000 which will also enable us to restock the music library with more of Jonny's favourite music.

The stand will be dedicated at a festival evensong at St Luke's on Sunday October 16th.

Please help us to raise the £5,000 we need for a permanent memorial to Jonny. Contributions can made at Just Giving (link below), given directly to members of St Luke's clergy or sent to the Parish office. Cheques should be made payable to St Luke's DCC please.

JustGiving Website: http://www.justgiving.com/JonnyLeonardMemorial

  Download the fundraising Flyer (A5, Microsoft Word 2003 Format)