STONINGTON — Peace Call for Ukraine benefit concert is being held Friday, April 29, at 7 p.m., at the Stonington Opera House, featuring several local performers. Geoffrey Warner planned the concert in collaboration with Opera House Arts.

There is a suggested donation of $10 per person at the door. All donations will go to World Central Kitchen providing fresh meals to communities in need. 

Proof of vaccination required.

Performers for the evening include: Birds on a Wire, Christopher Kapsha, Geoff Warner, Heather Jellison, Beyond Borders, Carl Karush, Cambotaka, Frank Gotwals, Stuart Kestenbaum, and more.

“It wasn’t hard to line up some very talented performers to create a very special evening,” said Geoffrey Warner, in a news release. “I think we all feel a need to do something to help the Ukraine refugees. As one person I could help a little, but by coming together we can do a lot. Because music pulls the heartstrings, I couldn’t think of a better way to raise money to help others and create a synergistic energy for peace and hope than to inspire a benefit concert. I chose World Central Kitchen as the beneficiary because food relief is not just a meal that keeps hunger away. It’s a plate of hope. It tells you in your darkest hour that someone, somewhere, cares about you.”

Within days of the initial Russian invasion of Ukraine, World Central Kitchen (WCK) began serving hot nourishing meals to families traveling long distances and waiting for hours at various border crossings in Poland and then in Romania, Moldova, Hungary, and Slovakia. Currently they are providing fresh food and hot meals to recently liberated Ukrainian cities. Follow their efforts on social media: #ChefsForUkraine.

World Central Kitchen provides freshly made, nutritious meals to survivors of disasters quickly and effectively.

“Good food provides not only nourishment, but also comfort and hope, especially in times of crisis,” said the release.

Founded in 2010 by Chef José Andrés, World Central Kitchen is first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises while working to build resilient food systems with locally led solutions, according to the release. To learn more and donate visit wck.org. 

For more information visit operahousearts.org. 

Opera House Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was founded in 1999 to restore the 1912 Stonington Opera House, on the National Register of Historic Places, to its original role as a performance venue and a community gathering space. We offer a year-round schedule of professional theater, music, film, dance, educational programs, community events, and more. Performances take place in multiple venues, including the Stonington Opera House, the restored Burnt Cove Church Community Center, and at site-specific locations across Deer Isle and Stonington, Maine. Opera House Arts' programs serve all of Hancock County's winter and summer residents and visitors, with a special emphasis on the residents of Deer Isle and the Blue Hill Peninsula.