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http://www.accordions.com/news.aspx?d=03-Feb-2012&lang=de&s=5244
http://www.accordions.com/news.aspx?d=03-Feb-2012&lang=de&s=5244
03-Feb-2012
by Harley Jones
|
 The funeral of well known blind accordionist 92 year old Toni Savage was held on January 4th 2012 with the funeral notified as ‘Toni's Last Gig’ and the subheading “This will be a celebration of Toni’s life and in accordance with her wishes… it will not be a gloomy affair!!” The Waitakere Brass Band were playing outside in tribute to Toni and the funeral was reported in the national news as “a colorful woman was remembered with a colorful funeral in Auckland today”. Entertainer Laura Joan Savage, known by her stage name Toni Savage, died at 92 years of age, and in memory of the work she did with guide dogs, she was given a special guard of honour. Toni Savage had wanted an upbeat celebration, not a solemn funeral, but it's never easy to say goodbye to an old friend. Friends are one thing she had a lot of, and today they remembered what it was that made her so popular. "She always had great energy that she brought to the room," said famous New Zealand entertainer Tom Sharplin. "People liked her very much, respected her and liked her, and admired her talent," says Guy Cater of the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand. Most of all, she made people laugh. Toni Savage took up the accordion in her teens and before long, she was performing at parties. That was only a few years before she began to lose her sight, but that didn't slow her down. In later life she devoted much of her time to help and entertain others, and raised money for guide dogs to help others like her who were also blind. She received many awards for her work, including a Queen's Service Medal for her services to entertainment. It was a fitting service for a remarkable woman, and Toni Savage was farewelled off the stage with the biggest reward any entertainer could wish for – a standing ovation. The accordion has lost a very good friend. The section about Toni Savage from the book (catalog No: nzaa1081) History of the Accordion in New Zealand, by Wallace Liggett, is linked: Toni Savage BEM QSM |