We've had quite the summer of fun and fundraising at Walsall Eyes, so as the season of picnics, barbecues and heatwaves draws to a close, we'd just like to put out a few words and notices to thank everyone that has helped us make the events possible and who have helped us to continue to raise much needed funds.
Walsall Eyes held 3 key events this summer, starting with a Beer and Skittles evening in June, attending Pelsall Carnival in July and our second annual fun day in August and, as you will see, we think each event in its own right was well received and well supported.
Beer and Skittles – 20th June
First then to our Beer and Skittles evening, held on 20th June at The Walsall Arms, Bank Street, Walsall. This one is an ever-present in our calendar and has for a long time been willingly and ably supported by their landlady, Jazz. This time around, she did not disappoint, putting on a buffet for the 30 or so people that attended and, as usual, doing whatever she could with her staff to make the night a success.
We managed to raise £77 from the raffle, including tickets purchased in advance by members and friends of the charity, and those purchased on the night by the ever-dependable regulars.
Around 30 people attended in total, including members, friends and relations, and we'd once again like to thank Jazz and all of the staff at The Walsall Arms for hosting us, providing the buffet and helping us to have another great evening.
This is a well-loved recurring event on our calendar and we hope to continue offering it.
Pelsall Carnival – 4th July
Next, we move into what was a scorching July, finding us at Pelsall Carnival on Saturday 4th July.
It wouldn't be right to continue before making the first shout-out to our Events Co-ordinator Claire Evans, ably assisted by her husband Rich. Claire and Rich are the heartbeat of most of our fundraising events, doing all of the organising both behind the scenes and in public and this event, like many of ours, would not have happened without them.
The main events here were a Bottle Tombola, brainchild of Claire, and a plant and flower sale, with Mark Mellor helping behind the scenes and providing flowers and plants for sale on the day. Mark is a long-term supporter of the charity and brother of our chairman, Steve.
We raised £206 from the Bottle Tombola and plant sale, which was an excellent effort considering the number of organisations and other attractions at the carnival on the day.
Special thanks also go out to everyone from our group that lent a helping hand on the day – Steve and Harjit, Dee and Andy, Kim, Talia and her ever-willing daughter Esme, to name just a few!
It was a long and very hot day, but everyone chipped in, did their bit and helped to make it a success. All of their hard work was very much appreciated by our chairman and all of our members.
Our Annual Fun Day – 9th August
And to the main event on 9th August, our annual fun day at The Wheatsheaf Pub, Birmingham Road, Walsall.
After the success of last year, we wanted to go bigger, and this time around we managed to put on a barbecue, were offered live entertainment by the owners of the pub, Steve and Pam, and included favourites like our bingo and raffle.
First special mention here has to go to Mark Mellor, for his "Guess The Money In The Bottle" competition. Mark had been building up the money in the bottle for months – getting donations from the kind people of Walsall in pubs and cafes, topping it up with his own money whenever he could.
It was his way of supporting us in the name of his beloved mom, Joyce, who we lost last year, and it was a fitting tribute to her, raising £344 in total, half of which went directly back to us, with the other £172 going to the lucky winner, Jenny Hicks, patron of The Railway Club in Pleck – well done Jenny and don't spend it all at once! :)
A raffle and bingo were also held on the day, raising another £289.
As ever, resident caller Michael Hayes, loaned to us from Walsall Society for the Blind, stole the show with his charisma, fun and usual vigour and enthusiasm, making the bingo one of the most entertaining parts of the day.
The Wheatsheaf's charity box added another £48.02, while Mark raised a further £29 through selling more plants on the day.
Most appreciated of all was an anonymous donation of £100, given to Steve on the day by a kind patron of The Wheatsheaf. The gentleman did not want to be identified but, nevertheless, unexpected acts of generosity like this mean an enormous amount to a small charity like ours. Whoever the gentleman was, please be assured that we are incredibly grateful for your support and really would like to thank you personally should you ever want to be named officially.
Landlord Steve then very kindly topped up the donations to bring the day's fundraising to £700, with Mark's additional £29 from his plant sales taking our final total from the fun day to a fantastic £729.
Our chairman Steve would also like to thank all of the singers and musicians who gave up their own time free of charge to provide the finale to the event, and a big thank you must also go to Steve, Pam and all of the bar staff at The Wheatsheaf for their help and support throughout the day.
And Still More Support
Our fundraising didn't quite end there.
We received £30.92 from the charity box at The Bird's Nest Cafe at the Bird In Hand in Wordsley, so a big thank you goes to Shel and all of her customers at The Bird's Nest for their continued generosity and support.
On 10th August, we also received another donation of £60 in memory of Joyce Mellor, which was donated towards the Priestley Smith bowling night to be held in October.
More Than £1,050 Raised
In total over the summer, we raised more than £1,050 – a staggering sum for a small charity which relies entirely on donations, fundraising and support from third parties.
More importantly, though, none of these events happen by themselves. Whether you organised, donated, bought a raffle ticket, helped out on a stall, gave up your time, performed for us, donated plants or bottles, or simply came along and joined in, you played a part in making our summer a success.
We do hope that everyone who either supported or attended our events had a great time and, from all of us at Walsall Eyes, we'd like to say a huge thank you.
We continue to look forward to serving and supporting the sight loss community of Walsall as best we can.
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