Vince Power tribute: he was a "kind and generous soul"

There have been many tributes paid to Vince Power since news came through of his death in March. People spoke admiringly of his business career and his great successes in the music industry. And rightly so. He achieved many remarkable things in the music space.

However, there was a side to Vince that didn’t get the recognition it deserves. I knew him for many years, and so it was possible to discern things that others might have missed. The truth is that Vince was always acutely aware of the difficulties that so many people face in their lives. It wasn’t just that he had empathy with them: on so many occasions, he reached for the cheque book and gave generously and quietly to help them.

In some instances, he used his entrepreneurial skills to raise money for charitable purposes. From the start of his involvement in the music festival scene, Vince inaugurated the concept of asking people on the guest list to donate £5 to charity for their guest pass. This enabled him to help set up, and donate to, housing associations in North London – a vital social good.

Separately, Vince supported Solas Anois (Irish for ‘light now’), a women’s refuge in North London; and The Aisling Project, which assisted elderly Irish people who wanted to return to Ireland. Similarly, the Irish Centre in Camden received both financial and practical help from him over many years.

“When I remember Vince, I think of two things: huge ambition and humble, life-changing kindness,” Gary Dunne, from the LIC said to me.

VINCE POWER.16-6-10.photo: Andy Paradise

Vince was also capable of seeing the global picture, as evidenced by his support for the organisation Cradle – which came into being because of the terrible war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was the recipient of both monies raised at festivals and Vince’s own personal contributions.

In all, it is reckoned that they received close to £1million courtesy of Vince Power. This money was used to supply food, medicines and other needs to children who had been brutalised by war. Then, with Vince’s support, housing and schools were built. He also, to my knowledge, put money into a system of mental health support, in the refugee camps, in both Europe and Thailand after the tsunami in 2004.

“Vince was a well of hope,” Dr. Tajma Kapic of Cradle said to me, of the man from Co. Waterford. “He never let Cradle down. He always showed up for us.”

Mary Coughlan has spoken in Hot Press about the extent to which he supported her – both financially and practically – when she hit rock bottom. “When I had no money, he paid for me to go to the Rutland Centre,” Mary revealed. “I’ve been 30 years sober, and I think about him every day. I can’t forget that, and I never will.”

This is the Vince Power that I knew. He wasn’t just great company, and a visionary in his approach to music. He really was exceptionally kind and generous, in a wonderfully quiet and unassuming way. He will be greatly missed by everyone who knew and loved him.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

Read this tribute and more in the May issue of Hot Press: