Edinburgh woman sets up fundraiser for fatherhood charity in memory of dad who died just before Christmas

Kira Watson has launched the fundraiser in memory of her father. Picture: Ian Georgeson.

An Edinburgh woman has launched a fundraiser for a fatherhood support charity in memory of her ‘superhero’ musician dad who died suddenly just before Christmas.

Kira Watson, 30, hopes the fundraiser, named ‘Take a sad song and make it better - composing Brian’s legacy’, will ‘make something meaningful’ out of the loss of her 66-year-old father Brian to a heart attack on December 22.

“He was my best friend, my superhero,” she said.

“I could talk to him about anything, and he would take me everywhere.”

Ms Watson has set up a JustGiving page in memory of her father for donations to Dads Rock, a charity which works to support fathers in building strong relationships with their children.

The fundraiser has so far raised almost £400 of its £1,000 target.

“He was so happy to be a dad, and if something like Dads Rock had been around back then he would have loved it,” Ms Watson said.

The charity offers music workshops to fathers and their children, which Ms Watson thinks would especially have appealed to her dad, an electrician who had played music all his life.

“He loved sitting down with kids and teaching them music,” she said.

“It would be great to know that something good has come out of this in support for Dads Rock.”

Mr Watson played guitar and harmonica.

He toured with his band Two Canoes, which he started with his best friend, and played the Stockbridge Festival every year.

“Weaving music into everything he could and never going anywhere without his guitar if he could help it, my dad was a talented guitarist, singer and songwriter,” Ms Watson said.

“If he didn’t have his guitar with him he was likely to find another opportunity to make music wherever he was.”

“He was always musical. My grandad, his dad, was too, he played the drums,” said Ms Watson.

“Dad got his first Beatles album and that changed everything, and then he got his first guitar shortly after.”

“He always took me to festivals, I grew up around music,” said Ms Watson.

The 30-year-old now works for a charity and organises welfare support at festivals.

Mr Watson also wrote songs, some of which his daughter plans to put on the website Bandcamp, where people can make further donations to Dads Rock in Mr Watson’s name.

“Larger than life with a heart too big for this world my dad would have loved to know that children were getting to experience the absolute joy of making music and other dads were being supported to do the most important job in the world in his name,” Ms Watson said.

“Dads rock but I think my dad rocked the most.”

Edinburgh-based charity Dads Rock runs events and workshops including antenatal classes, parenting workshops, playgroups, music lessons, and support for young dads.

Founded in 2011, it also has representatives on the National Father’s Advisory Board and the Scottish Parliament Cross Party on Shared Parenting.

Those wishing to donate to the fundraiser for Dads Rock can do so here.