A group of staff and pupils from a school in Colwyn Bay will be taking part in a walkathon to raise funds for Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women.
Over 120 pupils and staff members from Rydal Penrhos Independent School will be walking nine and a half kilometres to raise money for the charity’s Llandudno Centre of Wellbeing.
Groups of pupils from the senior school will head off from Colwyn Bay’s Victoria Pier on Wednesday 6 July at around 9am before heading along the coast and gathering in the grounds of the Llandudno Centre.
After the group has refuelled with a picnic, they will make the journey back to Victoria Pier to complete their challenge at around 3pm.
They will be joined at various stages of the walk by pupils from the prep school who met blind veteran and Llandudno town crier Billy Baxter recently and were keen not to miss out on this adventure.
Victoria Beech from the Blind Veterans UK Community Partnerships Team said:
“The team at Rydal Penrhos are looking to make the walkathon an annual event to support our Llandudno Centre. In return we hope to give the students the opportunity to learn more about the charity, the impact of sight loss, and to meet some of the veterans and hear their stories too.
“Their choice of a walkathon is brilliant as it enables the younger children to take part for smaller sections of the route, meaning that every member of the school community can be involved in supporting our blind veterans.
“Partnerships with organisations such as Rydal give us an opportunity to remove the barriers often placed by sight loss. Giving children the opportunity to learn about the impact of sight loss at an early age removes the apprehension many feel in later life when interacting with people with disabilities.”
The school is aiming to raise over £2,000 to support the work of the charity’s Llandudno Centre which focuses on providing rehabilitation for blind veterans from the local community and from across the UK.
If you would like to support the school and help them reach their target please visit their Just Giving page: justgiving.com/rydalpenrhos
If you would like to find out more about ways in which you can support Blind Veterans UK, contact the Community Partnerships Team on fundraising@blindveterans.org.uk or 0300 111 22 33.
Blind Veterans UK supports thousands of blind veterans across the country, but knows there are tens of thousands more who still need its support to rebuild their lives after sight loss.
If you, or someone you know, served in the Armed Forces, including National Service, and are now struggling with sight loss, then please get in touch. Call 0800 389 7979 or visit blindveterans.org.uk/support
