West Ashley salon owner continues personal fight to raise money for charity with Lip Sync for Lungs Live Battle VIII: Totally ’80s
by Lorne Chambers | Editor
Being an entertainer has always come naturally to Geoff Richardson. Whether it’s on stage or behind his chair at Lava Salon, which he owns along with his wife Noel. He’s always quick with a joke or clever phrase. Richardson even had a small role as a carnival barker in The Notebook, which was filmed here in Charleston. Once, for Noel’s 40th birthday, he rented out the American Theatre on King Street and created a whole Price is Right game for her and all of their friends. Richardson, of course, played the role of the witty game show host.
Richardson is also responsible for organizing local artists to paint a series of murals behind the buildings along Savannah Highway in the Avondale Business District, where Lava Salon’s West Ashley spot is located (he has a second location in Park Circle). But perhaps his biggest contribution to the local entertainment scene has been co-founding Lips Sync For Lungs, an annual lip sync battle that raises money for the American Lung Association’s lifesaving mission in South Carolina.
Having already raised more than $800,000 to date, the eighth installment called Lip Sync For Lungs Live Battle VIII: Totally ’80s! will be held Thursday, Feb. 29 at 7 p.m. at The Charleston Music Hall downtown. It should be a real blast, featuring performances from LaFaye Benton, U.S. Army vet and frontwoman of Rock-Soul band, LaFaye & the Fellas, Erin Lok, stand-up comedian and Second City alumna, Anna Krepelka, owner of Charleston Lash & Brows and event record spinner at “Soul 45s With Anna”; Julianne “JuJu” Taylor, Owner of Julianne Taylor Style and business coach, product designer and content creator. Richardson, who served as emcee for the event for six years, will also perform this year along with his oldest son Cason, who was just 10 years old at the first Lip Sync For Lungs event.
“As one of the original creators and founders of this event, I’m proud to say I’ve been a part of every aspect of the show since the beginning and we have raised a little over $800,000 in the last seven years,” says Richardson. “We’re really hoping to break the million-dollar mark.”
Richardson says it feels good to know that the money raised from this event stays local and that includes so many people in West Ashley, who are affected by lung disease from asthma to COPD, and lung cancer. For him, the cause is a personal one.
“I lost my grandfather when I was a child to COPD from smoking too many cigars and my mom, who passed away almost three years ago, was a lifelong addict to cigarettes. And I can’t fix what’s already lost. This event at least gives me the feeling that I can help fix what hasn’t yet been lost,” he says. “Lava Salon has always maintained the importance of being involved in the community that we serve, and this is another way that I could be a part of that representation.”
Investment in lung health is especially important in South Carolina. More than 102,000 people in the Charleston area suffer from lung disease, including lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Asthma is both the leading cause of hospitalizations in children and the number one cause of missed school days in the state. Funds raised by Live Battle VIII will help fund the American Lung Association in South Carolina’s efforts to end lung cancer and lung disease through local programs, advocacy efforts and research.
Lip Sync For Lungs Live Battle VIII: Totally ‘80s! will be held Thursday, Feb. 29 at 7 p.m. at The Charleston Music Hall, located at 27 John St. in downtown Charleston. Tickets are $45 and available at www.charlestonmusichall.com or www.LipSyncForLungs.org.
