Lake Mac Choir lend their voices to honour the memory of Zoe Wright
Singing was Zoe Wright's happy place.
Over the past year, the Lake Mac Choir was somewhere Zoe could meet with friends and momentarily put her mental health struggles aside and enjoy the beauty of sharing music with like-minded people.
Sadly, on May 14, the Lake Macquarie Marine Rescue volunteer lost her battle with depression. She was 50.
Her friends at the Lake Mac Choir are using their voices on Wednesday to ensure that Zoe is not forgotten.
Lake Mac Choir is dedicating their performances at 10am and 6pm at the Caves Beach Bar and Bungalows to Zoe's memory and are raising money for Lifeline.
The performance will include a special arrangement of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, a song requested by Zoe for her funeral on May 26.
Zoe's husband and Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie unit commander, Jim Wright, said his wife would be touched by the dedication.
"She loved going to the choir," Mr Wright said. "It made her happy and she enjoyed the people that were there.
"She'd look forward to it every week when it was on. She was a little annoyed when they had to stop for holidays."
Shay Perry, the director of Lake Macquarie tuition school Sunny Music Studios, launched Lake Mac Choir in February 2024 and Zoe was among the inaugural members.
Ms Perry said the goal of the choir was to make "music super accessible" to people who otherwise thought their "time had passed with music."
The choir has performed everything from rock classics like Dreams by Fleetwood Mac and Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over to modern pop songs by Billie Eilish.
"Zoe stopped coming for a few weeks and I knew she had struggled a bit and it was pretty normal for her to have a few weeks off and then come back and be as happy as ever," Ms Perry said.
Members of the Lake Mac Choir missed Zoe's funeral, so Ms Perry said it was an opportunity for the group to pay their respects.
"I've always said that music is not prejudiced and has the ability to connect people who otherwise might not have connected," she said.
"When you add in singing, we're all doing something that we love and have in common.
"Take away singing, and this is a group of my favourite people now. It's extraordinary the way the community comes together."
Earlier this week, the CEO of Lake Macquarie and Newcastle Suicide Prevention Network, Bradley Dunn, described the mental health statistics in the Hunter as "alarming."
More than 480 people died by suicide in the Hunter between 2019 and 2023, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data.
There were also more than 21,000 presentations to Hunter New England emergency departments for mental health issues in 2023-24, the third-highest per capita among NSW's 14 health districts.
Singing was Zoe Wright's happy place.
Over the past year, the Lake Mac Choir was somewhere Zoe could meet with friends and momentarily put her mental health struggles aside and enjoy the beauty of sharing music with like-minded people.
Sadly, on May 14, the Lake Macquarie Marine Rescue volunteer lost her battle with depression. She was 50.
Her friends at the Lake Mac Choir are using their voices on Wednesday to ensure that Zoe is not forgotten.
Lake Mac Choir is dedicating their performances at 10am and 6pm at the Caves Beach Bar and Bungalows to Zoe's memory and are raising money for Lifeline.
The performance will include a special arrangement of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, a song requested by Zoe for her funeral on May 26.
Zoe's husband and Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie unit commander, Jim Wright, said his wife would be touched by the dedication.
"She loved going to the choir," Mr Wright said. "It made her happy and she enjoyed the people that were there.
"She'd look forward to it every week when it was on. She was a little annoyed when they had to stop for holidays."
Shay Perry, the director of Lake Macquarie tuition school Sunny Music Studios, launched Lake Mac Choir in February 2024 and Zoe was among the inaugural members.
Ms Perry said the goal of the choir was to make "music super accessible" to people who otherwise thought their "time had passed with music."
The choir has performed everything from rock classics like Dreams by Fleetwood Mac and Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over to modern pop songs by Billie Eilish.
"Zoe stopped coming for a few weeks and I knew she had struggled a bit and it was pretty normal for her to have a few weeks off and then come back and be as happy as ever," Ms Perry said.
Members of the Lake Mac Choir missed Zoe's funeral, so Ms Perry said it was an opportunity for the group to pay their respects.
"I've always said that music is not prejudiced and has the ability to connect people who otherwise might not have connected," she said.
"When you add in singing, we're all doing something that we love and have in common.
"Take away singing, and this is a group of my favourite people now. It's extraordinary the way the community comes together."
Earlier this week, the CEO of Lake Macquarie and Newcastle Suicide Prevention Network, Bradley Dunn, described the mental health statistics in the Hunter as "alarming."
More than 480 people died by suicide in the Hunter between 2019 and 2023, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data.
There were also more than 21,000 presentations to Hunter New England emergency departments for mental health issues in 2023-24, the third-highest per capita among NSW's 14 health districts.
Singing was Zoe Wright's happy place.
Over the past year, the Lake Mac Choir was somewhere Zoe could meet with friends and momentarily put her mental health struggles aside and enjoy the beauty of sharing music with like-minded people.
Sadly, on May 14, the Lake Macquarie Marine Rescue volunteer lost her battle with depression. She was 50.
Her friends at the Lake Mac Choir are using their voices on Wednesday to ensure that Zoe is not forgotten.
Lake Mac Choir is dedicating their performances at 10am and 6pm at the Caves Beach Bar and Bungalows to Zoe's memory and are raising money for Lifeline.
The performance will include a special arrangement of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, a song requested by Zoe for her funeral on May 26.
Zoe's husband and Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie unit commander, Jim Wright, said his wife would be touched by the dedication.
"She loved going to the choir," Mr Wright said. "It made her happy and she enjoyed the people that were there.
"She'd look forward to it every week when it was on. She was a little annoyed when they had to stop for holidays."
Shay Perry, the director of Lake Macquarie tuition school Sunny Music Studios, launched Lake Mac Choir in February 2024 and Zoe was among the inaugural members.
Ms Perry said the goal of the choir was to make "music super accessible" to people who otherwise thought their "time had passed with music."
The choir has performed everything from rock classics like Dreams by Fleetwood Mac and Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over to modern pop songs by Billie Eilish.
"Zoe stopped coming for a few weeks and I knew she had struggled a bit and it was pretty normal for her to have a few weeks off and then come back and be as happy as ever," Ms Perry said.
Members of the Lake Mac Choir missed Zoe's funeral, so Ms Perry said it was an opportunity for the group to pay their respects.
"I've always said that music is not prejudiced and has the ability to connect people who otherwise might not have connected," she said.
"When you add in singing, we're all doing something that we love and have in common.
"Take away singing, and this is a group of my favourite people now. It's extraordinary the way the community comes together."
Earlier this week, the CEO of Lake Macquarie and Newcastle Suicide Prevention Network, Bradley Dunn, described the mental health statistics in the Hunter as "alarming."
More than 480 people died by suicide in the Hunter between 2019 and 2023, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data.
There were also more than 21,000 presentations to Hunter New England emergency departments for mental health issues in 2023-24, the third-highest per capita among NSW's 14 health districts.
Singing was Zoe Wright's happy place.
Over the past year, the Lake Mac Choir was somewhere Zoe could meet with friends and momentarily put her mental health struggles aside and enjoy the beauty of sharing music with like-minded people.
Sadly, on May 14, the Lake Macquarie Marine Rescue volunteer lost her battle with depression. She was 50.
Her friends at the Lake Mac Choir are using their voices on Wednesday to ensure that Zoe is not forgotten.
Lake Mac Choir is dedicating their performances at 10am and 6pm at the Caves Beach Bar and Bungalows to Zoe's memory and are raising money for Lifeline.
The performance will include a special arrangement of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, a song requested by Zoe for her funeral on May 26.
Zoe's husband and Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie unit commander, Jim Wright, said his wife would be touched by the dedication.
"She loved going to the choir," Mr Wright said. "It made her happy and she enjoyed the people that were there.
"She'd look forward to it every week when it was on. She was a little annoyed when they had to stop for holidays."
Shay Perry, the director of Lake Macquarie tuition school Sunny Music Studios, launched Lake Mac Choir in February 2024 and Zoe was among the inaugural members.
Ms Perry said the goal of the choir was to make "music super accessible" to people who otherwise thought their "time had passed with music."
The choir has performed everything from rock classics like Dreams by Fleetwood Mac and Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over to modern pop songs by Billie Eilish.
"Zoe stopped coming for a few weeks and I knew she had struggled a bit and it was pretty normal for her to have a few weeks off and then come back and be as happy as ever," Ms Perry said.
Members of the Lake Mac Choir missed Zoe's funeral, so Ms Perry said it was an opportunity for the group to pay their respects.
"I've always said that music is not prejudiced and has the ability to connect people who otherwise might not have connected," she said.
"When you add in singing, we're all doing something that we love and have in common.
"Take away singing, and this is a group of my favourite people now. It's extraordinary the way the community comes together."
Earlier this week, the CEO of Lake Macquarie and Newcastle Suicide Prevention Network, Bradley Dunn, described the mental health statistics in the Hunter as "alarming."
More than 480 people died by suicide in the Hunter between 2019 and 2023, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data.
There were also more than 21,000 presentations to Hunter New England emergency departments for mental health issues in 2023-24, the third-highest per capita among NSW's 14 health districts.
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