I am going to be like a vampire and suck money out of you for a good cause,  Gene Simmons exclaimed to an awe-struck crowd at the first Matter Australia charity fundraiser. The Kiss co-founder was the special guest at the invitation-only cocktail party at the private residence of Graham and Malca Laitt in Dalkeith hosted by the charity s founder Brendan Clark and his wife Portia. Clark has worked tirelessly to tackle malnutrition of at-risk children in Third World countries and formed a strong bond with Simmons in Zambia in 2012, where the rocker signed up to be the charity s ambassador. Simmons regaled the crowd with his own experiences of growing up poor in Israel and then kept to his word as he helped sell official Kiss guitars at $10,000 apiece and priceless backstage experiences for the Kiss concert at Perth Arena. Charles Kamwi didn t need to be encouraged to spend big, having donated $25,000 just to be in attendance.
WORDS  ROSS McRAE
PICTURES  JOHN KOH