Volunteers saves Abingdon Macular Group from closure

* By Herald Reporter »


A GROUP set up to support blind people in Abingdon has been rescued from closure.

The Abingdon Macular Group has been a help to people with failing eyesight for eight years.

The only dedicated club of its type in the town, it lets people suffering macular degeneration meet up in Abingdon Baptist church hall, in Ock Street, to chat over a cup of tea with others who share their condition. Guest speakers also regularly visit the group.

But when organiser Daphne Baker, 86, decided to step down from her role after four years and other volunteers also left, it looked like the group would have to close.

Attempts to find new volunteers had failed, and Mrs Baker desperately appealed for help.

Now a Good Samaritan has stepped forward to save the group after hearing about its plight at a day to attract new members to clubs and societies in the town.

Audrey Samuels, 47, said she wanted to help the group after witnessing the effect of the eyesight condition on her late uncle.

She said: “I went along to the clubs and societies day, started speaking to Daphne, and offered to start helping with admin. I just wanted to get involved with something voluntary which would help people.

“My uncle did suffer macular degeneration, so that was a common factor. It really was not good at all.

“He lost a lot of confidence and he was scared that he was going to go blind. It really did upset him.”

Mrs Baker said: “We have been facing a difficult time with people about to go away and do different things.

“I’ve been doing it for four years and felt it was the right time to step down.

“Abingdon Macular Group is the only group for blind people in Abingdon and for people in that situation, it is a huge help.

“When you don’t have eyesight, it can cut you off from so much of the world and it’s nice to have someone else who you can chat to and who understands what it’s like.”

Frank Shearman, 84, from Wantage, is one of 20 members who attend the regular meetings.

He first noticed his sight deteriorating eight years ago and his GP recommended he go to a specialist clinic, which identified the condition.

He said: “It is a chance to meet people that suffer the same as I did. Quite a lot of them are far worse.

“I have been told I shall not go blind, but my finer sight has got worse. I am one of the lucky ones. We do not discuss what we have got to any extent, but the different ways of handling it and different things we can buy to help it.”

Sports greats give to auction

Tour de France golden boy Lance Armstrong will help boxing legend Muhammad Ali pack a punch for charity.

A signed Armstrong jersey and a signed Ali boxing glove have been secured for the Wayne Bennett dinner at Ellerslie Convention Centre on Friday, June 4.

The two items are just part of an astonishing array of goodies to be auctioned to raise funds for a number of charities at the Mad Butcher and Suburban Newspapers Community Trust dinner.

Also under the hammer on the night will be a framed Australian Rugby League Anzac jersey signed by the Kangaroos and a framed New Zealand Rugby League jersey signed by the Kiwis as well as many other items including some spectacular artwork and fine wine.

Bennett is the world's most successful league coach ever, but is famous for his silence. He rarely grants interviews, frequently gives as short an answer as possible and never hesitates to tell media if he thinks their questions are stupid.

But the man who played for Australia and has coached Canberra, the Broncos, St George, Queensland and Australia – and who has even provided coaching advice to Kiwis head Stephen Kearney – will front up to help raise cash for the four charities selected by the trust – Allergy New Zealand, Diabetes Auckland, the Prostate Cancer Foundation of New Zealand and Macular Degeneration New Zealand.

"It's an honour to have Bennett and this is also a change of format for us," says Mad Butcher and Suburban Newspapers Community Trust chairman Peter Leitch QSM.

Normally the trust events are lunches but the June 4 event will be held at night and will also feature comedian Ben Hurley and Dancing with the Stars entertainer Shane Cortese and his five-piece band.

The gala event includes cocktails from VnC, a delicious three-course meal with complementary drinks from Lion Breweries and Glengarry Wines who are sponsorship partners of the event with The Radio Network, Edwards Sound and Sentra Printing.

This is a great opportunity to get your company to take a table to entertain clients and staff while supporting four worthy causes.