Singing Barista raises more than $25,000 for Kids’ Water Spray Park

Sunny Shams, mild-mannered barista, used his formidable musical talent to raise more than $25,000 for a new Rotary Water Spray Park for kids. On July 26th and 27th, Sunny and his friends entertained near sold-out audiences at the Charlie White Theatre in Sidney.

Sunny—who is both a Lyric Tenor and a jazz pianist with a loyal following in Victoria—invited friends to help him put on one of the concerts of the year. Sunny’s first set of jazz standards, performed with Lukas Peladeau and Don Leppard, set everyone’s toes tapping. More than one attendee said they had “tears in their eyes” at the end of the concert, when they realized the depth and range of this young man’s talent. Also revealed was another up and coming talent, Adam Sakiyama. This recent graduate of Stelly’s Secondary sang, played the piano and left the audience wanting more. The opera duets and trios sung by Sunny and his friends, Sahara Sloan and Javier Gutierrez, soared and flew, thrilling the audience. A teen-aged attendee (who prefers to remain nameless) said she “loved the opera portion of the program!”

Chair of the Organizing Committee, Fraser Smith, expressed his pride in both Sunny and the community that came out to hear him. “Sunny is a consummate performer, who contributed every penny of profit to help build a water spray park for the children of this community. Sidney has produced a fine, talented young man who is selfless about giving back to the town that nurtured him.”

“Our service clubs contribute enormously to life on the Saanich Peninsula and I decided I wanted to help,” says Sunny. “I am so pleased that I was able to help the Sidney by the Sea Rotary club in its efforts to build a children’s water spray park in our town.”

The Water Spray Park will benefit local children and add to the tourism value of the Town of Sidney. The campaign to fund the children’s water spray park is almost complete.The Sidney by the Sea Rotary Club will hold a “reverse draw” in October, which will conclude the fundraising.

Sunny Shams and Coordinating Committee Chair Fraser Smith.

Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 32,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.