When Martin Shirley was elected as 2024 Captain of the Men’s Senior Section at Brampton Park Golf Club, he chose Huntingdonshire Society for the Blind & Vision Impaired as his ‘Charity of the Year’. Through the efforts of Martin, his Vice Captain, Adrian Kneen, with the generosity of the Brampton Park Seniors, the club raised the impressive sum of £2,500.
Martin invited the Chair of the Board of Trustees at Hunts Blind & Vision Impaired, Nick Ruston, to the Seniors Section AGM on Friday, 15th November. As well as collecting a cheque, Nick was invited to speak to the members.
Nick thanked the members for their generosity and then gave a brief insight into the work of Hunts Blind & Vision Impaired. The Society was founded in 1922 to help WW1 veterans who had lost their sight in the conflict. Whilst the causes have changed over the years, sight loss is still life-changing – but it does not need to be ‘life-ending’. The Society has well over 600 Huntingdonshire residents living with sight loss. The Society’s role is to ensure these people can live full and independent lives.
The Society provides a wide range of services to visually impaired people, their carers and family members in Huntingdonshire, in order to meet a variety of needs. The Society understands that every vision impairment is different and are passionate about delivering the services people need.
The Society offers free information, advice, and support, to blind and vision impaired adults and children. Whether they need assistance towards an entitlement application, technical advice on a piece of equipment, practical solutions to an everyday problem, or just want someone to talk to, there is always a warm friendly response from the team at Hunts Blind & Vision Impaired.
As well as the practical side, Hunts Blind & Vision Impaired provides a range of social activities to ease the loneliness that can accompany sight loss. There are monthly club meetings at St Neots, Huntingdon, St Ives and Ramsey with entertainment and a chance simply to chat with ‘peer group’ friends. The Society also organise Arts & Craft Group sessions, Walking Group outings and activities such as climbing on the indoor wall at Grafham Water, archery, etc.
The money raised by the Seniors Section at Brampton Park Golf Club will not be used for day-to-day expenses. With such generous gifts, the Society always wants donors to see something tangible for their efforts. In this instance, the Society will use the funds to upgrade their website to include the facilities for online donations and e-commerce.
For more information…
The photo shows Martin Shirley (left) presenting a cheque to Nick Ruston (right) at Brampton Park Golf Club.