An email out of the blue was the start of a fantastic friendship between the band and relatives of the Goodwin family in America.
Carol and Iza Goroff are such lovely genuine people that the band feels very honoured that they have taken such an interest in us and our music.
Iza and Carol Goroff
.... out of the blue
Carol Goroff's Grandmother was Frederick Goodwin's sister and on the 2nd January 2005 we received an email that read:
Frederick Joseph Goodwin was my grandmother's brother. I heard many stories re: the tragedy. Frederick married his first cousin, my grandmother Florence Emmeline Mary was witness at their wedding.
Currently I am writing my memoirs.
Please inform me as to how I can purchase a copy of the CD - Bound for the Promised Land
Please let me know how I might get in touch with Janet Hollerhead and Colin ?.
Respectfully,
Carol Goodwin Goroff
We sent a copy of "Bound for the Promised Land" to Carol and she, and her family, absolutely loved it.
.... meeting up and a special concert
In May 2006, Carol and Iza came over to England, visiting other relatives of the family and also staying in the house where the Goodwin family were living before they boarded the Titanic for America.
They took us all out to lunch and we then played a special "Bound for the Promised Land" Concert for them and other members of the family and friends at the Rachel Fowler Centre with our friend Andy guesting on harmonica.
.... the "Unknown Child"
In May 2007 we recieved an email from Carol swearing us to secrecy and asking us to write another song.
Apparently it was just about to be announced that the body of the "Unknown Child", in the graveyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia, had been positively identified as Sidney Goodwin, the baby of the Goodwin family.
Carol asked us if we would write and record a song for Sidney Goodwin and if we could then go over to Halifax and perform it at a special service for Sidney.
We wrote and recorded "An Unknown Child" weaving in references that Carol had given to us on how he was found, by whom etc.
We weren't able to go over to Halifax to play the song live but we sent it over on CD and it was played at the service.
.... the book
Carol is nearing completion of the book and has a chapter in it about the band, the songs and the concert we gave her. She is also planning to include a CD with the two songs in the back of the book.
.... the 100th Anniversary
2012 is the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic and Carol and Iza will be visiting Melksham again at the beginning of April.
She's bringing the manusript of the book with her for us to see and the Carol and Iza will be returning to the USA on the MS Balmoral 100th Anniversary Memorial Cruise which leaves Southampton on the 8th April and traces the route taken by the Titanic.
There will be a special memorial ceremony between 11:40 p.m. when the ship hit the iceberg and 2:20 a.m. on Apr. 15, exactly 100 years after the world's largest ship sank to the bottom of the ocean.
