A MUSIC festival is set to come to Newport in memory of a teenager who died of an undiagnosed illness to raise vital funds for a charity in his name.
Ieuan Thomas-Yendle, from Pill, passed away at the age of 13 from an undiagnosed illness that gradually robbed him of his mobility, speech, sight and finally his life.
Ieuan had ‘the heart and courage of a lion’ and his family have since devoted their lives to supporting other families with terminally ill children and young people, starting Ieaun the Lion Memorial fund in 2009.
Lionfest 3, due to take place on October 21, will raise funding which helps families share special memories in a luxury, fully adapted holiday home at Kiln Park, Tenby.
For Ieuan's brother, musician Ben Thomas-Yendle, its not only a fund close to his hear but it’s the first Lionfest since covid and the first ever time the event will be live.
The festival was created in 2020 by Ben and his friend Karl Blythe and started as a live Facebook streaming event. This year will be a special as it will be held at the Pill Harriers Sports Club on Courtybella Terrace.
Lionfest 3, hosted by Newport DJ and Newport City Radio presenter Adam Prosser, will feature three bands and two acoustic acts which will take the audience through the decades with a range of music.
Ben Thomas-Yendle, one of the founders of Lionfest, is ecstatic to finally be hosting the venue in person from a venue with no covid restrictions.
He said: “This year is a special Lionfest as we get to host it live from a local venue, we are very excited to finally bring the event to the people.
“It gives the bands and acoustic singers an audience to play in front of, we have had to draw it back a little to pull this off at a venue.
Lionfest3 to host event for the first time live from a venue. Picture: Ben Thomas-Yendle
“The past two years were successful as over £2,000 was raised for Lion Memorial Fund, with Facebook live a powerful tool for us as we had 18 acts play throughout the day.
“It is going to be a special evening, especially as things are finally getting back to normal after covid and hopefully we can build on the last two successful events and test the waters a bit.
“It’s a hell of an achievement getting to Lionfest 3, it has been so popular the last three years, so we are hoping it is as popular at the venue as it has on Facebook live.
“At the moment we are keeping it on a small scale, but as the years go on, we want it to get bigger and bigger to keep the charity going, we will build each year to see how far we can take it.”
Ieuan was known for his love of singing, with family describing that his ‘beautiful’ singing voice and impromptu shows would fill a room with laughter and song.
The event will be at The Pill Harriers, Sports Club. Picture: Google
Throughout the trauma, the teenager always raised a smile and was known for his fighting spirit. If he survived the illness, he would now be 28 years-old and pursuing his dream of becoming a performer.
Tickets for Lionfest are £5 and are available at LIONFEST 3 at Pill Harriers Sports Club event tickets from TicketSource. The event starts at 6pm. For more information about the Ieuan the Lion Memorial Fund, visit ieuanthelion.com
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