Is it your New Year’s resolution to get fit and shed that extra Christmas weight? If so, we are running our annual Fitness February Challenge, encouraging the general public and supporters to take on a month-long fitness challenge raising funds for, and awareness of, the charity. Now in its fourth year, we have introduced a new set of FREE fitness challenges to take on, encouraging a healthy and active lifestyle for all. We believe that sight loss should not mean missing out and actively encourage our members to take part in social activities to keep fit and reduce isolation.

There are three fitness challenges as part of the Fitness February campaign, encouraging supporters to walk, run or cycle the full / half / quarter distance of Dorset in the 28 days of February – with the shortest challenge requiring just 0.8 miles a day!

Leah Cross, Community Support Worker at Dorset Blind Association, has taken part in the Fitness February Challenge in previous years, saying: “ I think Fitness February is a great chance for anyone to take up exercise. Whether you’re into fitness or not, I know how important the need for Dorset Blind Association is as I see it firsthand.”

We hope that in people signing up to the Fitness February Challenge, they will raise awareness for the charity across the county, as well as vital funds, with the suggested sponsorship target being just £50. With no government funding or support from the RNIB, the charity relies 100% on the generosity of its supporters.

Dorset Blind Association provides various services and practical help for blind and partially sighted people across the whole of Dorset where there are currently more than 30,000 people living with sight loss. This number is predicted to increase every year and is expected to reach 35,000 in 2020, causing an even bigger increase in demand for the much-needed services and support.

Gareth Owens, Community and Corporate Fundraiser at Dorset Blind Association, said: “At DBA we are all about the people: our central belief is that sight loss should not be a barrier to people living full and active lives, so it makes sense for us to champion a challenge like Fitness February.”

If you would like to take part in the charity’s Fitness February Challenge, please click here for more information or register now to receive your free fundraising pack.

The Big Give Christmas Challenge has officially started! Donate now until Tuesday 4th December to have your donation DOUBLED and help us continue running our social and activity clubs throughout 2019.

Watch our video explaining how the Big Give Christmas Challenge and your donation can help us.

 

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We are aiming to make the lives of our members happier this Christmas by continuing to provide the vital 25 social and activity clubs across the county. The clubs provide over 450 blind and partially sighted people with much needed friendships and peer support to relieve isolation and prevent loneliness.

Almost two-thirds of people registered blind or partially-sighted never or rarely go out, causing loneliness and depression. Our social clubs have a huge impact upon the lives of the people who use them, promoting independence, well being and an active lifestyle, while significantly reducing loneliness and depression. 4/5 of the charities social club members agree that they feel less isolated as a result of attending the social clubs.

Jess, a visually impaired member from the charities’ Poole Lighthouse group said “Dorset Blind Association’s Poole Lighthouse club has helped me talk about my sight loss, it is nice to be around people who experience similar things and to make a lot of friends.”

We have been selected to take part in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, the UK’s largest online match funding scheme, once again this year to try and raise the £15,000 required to fund the social clubs throughout 2019. We hope to achieve this through public donations, that will be DOUBLED during the week of the 27th November to 4th December as part of the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2018.

Gareth Owens, Community and Corporate Fundraiser at Dorset Blind Association said:

“This is very much a big thing for the charity and could be massive for our service provision. To put it into context: The Big Give can turn £7,500 in online donations into £15,000 which would run all of our social clubs for an entire year”.

We hope it will be an incentive that your donation could be more than doubled during the week following Giving Tuesday, the 27th November and are seeking more kind individuals and supporters to make an online donation during the week of 27th November – 4th December.

If you would like to help keep Dorset Blind Association’s social clubs running, please donate during the week of the 27th November and make a difference to the lives of blind and partially sighted people across Dorset this Christmas!                                             

Donations can be made here: https://secure.thebiggive.org.uk/project/clubs

 

Katherine, a local visually impaired member and supporter of Dorset Blind Association, recently pushed herself to the limit and jumped out of a plane to support the local charity! Here at Dorset Blind Association we believe that sight should not mean missing out and actively encourage our members to take part in social clubs and activities. 

Katherine was joined by another local supporter of Dorset Blind; Heather, and between them they raised just over £1,300, making a fantastic difference to the lives of partially sighted people in the community.

The Charity Tandem Skydive took place over at Old Sarum, Salisbury, with the Go Skydive team. The minimum fundraising target for participants wishing to do a skydive for Dorset Blind Association is £350 with a £50 registration fee.

Do you fancy ticking a skydive off your bucket list, or to challenge yourself this new year? Why not take on a skydive and fundraise for Dorset Blind Association where the sky is the limit! Minimum fundraising target is £350, but do not be afraid to go beyond this target just as Heather and Katherine did! Two more daredevil supporters, Hannah and Frankie are taking the plunge before Christmas and have already raised a phenomenal £740! If you would like to support them visit their JustGiving Page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/hannahandfrankietaketheplunge

For more information or to sign yourself up for a skydive, contact Gareth on 01202 712864 or at gareth@dorsetblind.org.uk.or visit the website: https://www.goskydive.com/dorset-blind-association/

 

Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, Angus Campbell, officially opened our second charity shop on Monday 29th October, in Saxon Square, Christchurch.

On the opening of the shop he said: “It is great to have been asked to open the second of the shops, which is one of many more to come… It shows a lot of forethought and I really admire the management and the teams who do this, its a great organisation and it was a great privilege to cut the ribbon.”

We opened our first charity shop in Ferndown last year, and were able to open the second, much earlier than expected, due to a generous donation of £10,000 from the Talbot Village Trust. We plan to open up to 10 charity shops across the county, to provide a sustainable, long term stream of income to maintain our services, to raise awareness of the work of the charity and to act as local hubs for visually impaired people throughout Dorset.

As well as selling a wide range of donated goods, the charity shops hold display areas of specialist equipment and other aids for visually impaired people. They are also an information point, offering advice to people affected by sight loss, as well as their family and friends. The charity shops also offer volunteering opportunities for visually impaired people, to gain useful skills and experience.

Jonathan Holyhead, Chief Executive Officer of Dorset Blind Association said: “I am thrilled that we now have our shop at Christchurch formally open and extremely grateful to the Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, Angus Campbell, for performing this duty. This shop is our second and, along with our first at Ferndown, it will be crucial to the long term future delivery of our key community support service. This helps blind and partially sighted people across Dorset adjust to living with serious sight loss, to still feel their life has purpose and to still lead full, healthy and socially active lives in the local community. We plan to open more shops next year and every penny they raise will be spent on helping local visually impaired people.”

If you would like to support the shop, which is based in Saxon Square opposite Poundstretcher, then pop in and say hello to the lovely shop managers Gary and Tracy! Volunteers and donations urgently required. Call 01202 021132 for more information.

View photos of our Christchurch shop opening here.

 

We held our exclusive Centenary Ball on Saturday 13th October at the Hilton Hotel, Bournemouth. The prestigious 100th Anniversary celebration raised a phenomenal £22,705 on the night: an incredible amount and also the most that we have ever raised in one event!

The event was kindly sponsored by our long-running supporter Blue Sky Financial Planning and saw over 160 guests to celebrate an impressive 100 years of Dorset Blind Association, with guests arriving in their finest dinner suits and posh frocks to a red carpet welcome complimentary glass of champagne, followed by a three-course dinner with wine and coffee.

The Centenary celebrations were thoroughly embraced by our guests, who tried their hands at the Viva Las Vegas Casino, danced the night away to the fantastic sounds of Swing Unlimited Big Band and participated in the accompanying raffle and auction. To get the guests up and moving after dinner, a fun and thoroughly entertaining game of Heads or Tails was played to music.

Guests had the opportunity to meet our patrons, Lord and Lady Julian and Emma Fellowes, and DBA President, James Weld. On display was an exhibition of Dorset Blind Association’s extensive history, featuring a timeline of the most important milestones in the past 100 years.

Jonathan Holyhead, Chief Executive Officer of Dorset Blind Association, said:

“The evening was a wonderful, happy way to help celebrate our centenary. I am absolutely thrilled by the amount raised and I cannot thank people enough for their generosity. This money will go towards the provision of future services and support for blind and partially sighted people across Dorset, so a great many people will benefit from it and on their behalf I want to say “thank you”, again, to everyone who helped make the Ball such a huge success.”

We have held our annual Ball for 4 years, and will be returning with the Masquerade theme next year on Saturday 26th October. Get the date in your diary now so you won’t miss out on this spectacular event!

Photographs are available here.