On a balmy Saturday in June, local residents of Chaldon and their families and friends came together for an evening of entertainment by The Charisma Girls in 'Concert For A Smile'.

Madeline Castrey, 16, Matilda Castrey, 14 and Emily Burrill, 16 heard of a local girl who suffers from cancer and immediately wanted to help. Francesca Dale is a bright three year old with a soft tissue cancer called Rhabdomyosarcoma and a rare congenital disorder called Moebius Syndrome. Because of her condition, which leaves her lips paralysed, she is unable to speak and smile. Having been inspired by this wonderful young girl, The Charisma Girls, with the help of other local residents staged a fantastic evening of entertainment in an idyllic private residential setting in Chaldon.

The Charisma Girls performed an array of songs from the 1940s to the latest chart toppers and had everybody up on their feet. Francesca herself also made an appearance and was the centre of attention helping to collect the money from raffle ticket sales whilst her ten year old sister Imogen was presented with an award, recognising her as Chaldon's 'Best Big Sister'.

The compere for the evening, Tandridge District Councillor, Pat Cannon said: "The concert was truly magical. I witnessed first hand just how much work went into making this event the obvious success it has been. It never ceases to amaze me how people step up to the plate for a worthy cause. Making this lovely little girl and her family's plight less difficult to cope with is something everyone should be proud to be associated with".

Pat also made special mention of the nine gentlemen and their support crew who cycled from Paris to Geneva to raise money for The Francesca Dale Appeal, many of whom attended the concert.

'Concert For A Smile' was a great success with over ￡4,000 being raised for The Francesca Dale Appeal. This, together with with the money raised from the bike ride means that a communication device can be purchased and Francesca can have valuable speech therapy and communication lessons.