Edge’s Biggest Fan Gives Back

One of the reasons I have been a U2 fan for over 30 years ( beside their music of course ) is the fact that they were a socially conscious band from the very beginning, perhaps when it was not such a fashionable thing to be. They have remained so all these years. Their support of organizations and individuals who try to give a voice to those who have none has never stopped. I can remember being inspired by them all those years ago. I wrote letters to “prisoners of conscience” on behalf of Amnesty International then and I support Bono’s efforts to end HIV/Aids in poverty stricken countries today. I am not alone. U2 fans are perhaps the most giving fans of any band. It is always a joy for me to be able to spread the word when a fan is doing something very special.

If you went to any of the 360 shows this last leg in the United States and Canada, you may have run into one of our forum members lovingly known to all of us as EdgeFest. If you don’t know her by name then you may have seen her with her signature black Edge hat on most often in the GA line. She attended 11 shows on this part of the tour and gave U2 fans worldwide a live feed from the Winnipeg show. Lori-Jo (real name!) spent time taking some full color photos in East Lansing, Toronto and Montreal and she has chosen to feature them in a 2012 calendar. The calendars cost 30 Canadian dollars plus shipping and handling with profits ranging from $4.50-5.00 (price varies slightly based on location). One hundred percent of the proceeds will go to her guitar hero’s organization, Music Rising in honor of Edge’s 50th birthday. For those who may not know, Music Rising was started by Edge to help musicians in the New Orleans area after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. It is something very near and dear to his heart and to Lori-Jo’s as well. She hopes to sell 100 calendars for a $500 donation, but the sky is the limit! She will update fans on her progress on her Twitter account @EdgeFest.

Many more details can be found here.

I wish her the very best of luck. I plan to order mine as a Christmas gift to myself! She hopes to do something special every year on his birthday. It is a wonderful way to honor The Edge and the work of Music Rising.

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10 Responses to “Edge’s Biggest Fan Gives Back”

  1. DaleRM 14 August 2011 at 7:24 pm permalink

    Hi. Nice item on a great cause. One clarification - the amounts quoted above are the profit/donation amounts. The calenders themselves sell for ~$30 (+S&H) which is the cost to make them plus the donation amount.

  2. StrongGirl 14 August 2011 at 7:28 pm permalink

    Thank you, Dale. I have corrected it. I was in the process of editing the piece. Much appreciated.

  3. EdgeFest 14 August 2011 at 7:48 pm permalink

    Thank you so much SG! Looking forward to the sales generated by your blog post. I’m very happy with how it turned out and I think U2 fans will be very happy with it. I will be updating my website twice monthly with the latest tally of how much I’ve raised (nearly $50 so far :) ). Thanks again… EdgeFest/Lori-Jo

  4. George 14 August 2011 at 8:43 pm permalink

    “If you went to any of the 360 shows this last leg in North America and Canada”
    -FYI: Canada is part of North America. In fact, it is North America’s largest country.

  5. StrongGirl 14 August 2011 at 9:47 pm permalink

    Hi George,
    Thank you for pointing that out. I actually do know that Canada is part of North America. It was a mistake in typing that I will now correct.

    While I feel it is very important to post something that gets the facts straight and is grammatically correct, I do hope that the most important thing readers will take from this post is the generosity of U2 and their fans.

  6. George 15 August 2011 at 6:03 am permalink

    Of course, SG! I don’t primarily read this as a factual editor, but when I do see a glaring one, I feel I need to comment. Let it be known that I did, in fact, learn a little something about the generosity of another fan.

  7. StrongGirl 15 August 2011 at 3:00 pm permalink

    I do thank you for pointing that out, George. I am glad you also learned about the generosity of a U2 fan! Guess what I learned…never try to write something here while my sons are playing a rather loud video game behind me :-) Best of luck to Lori-Jo on the fund raiser!!

  8. K2 19 August 2011 at 1:36 pm permalink

    Go Edgefest! Can’t wait to see my calendar. :-)

  9. K2 19 August 2011 at 1:37 pm permalink

    BTW, for those of us who didn’t actually ever get to meet The Edge, meeting Edgefest was the next best thing. Really!

  10. EdgeFest 29 August 2011 at 5:39 pm permalink

    Thank you for your kind comments K2… I can’t imagine it being close myself… :D

    Thanks to all of your orders I’d like to report that today I donated $106.14 to Music Rising.

    Blog post/screenshot is here:

    http://mrstheedge.com/blog/2011/08/29/first-donation-to-music-rising-thank-you-everyone/