Counting volunteers down to Blind Week Appeal

Counting volunteers down to Blind Week Appeal

The Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind (RNZFB) is thrilled at the response generated by its recent call for 15,999 Blind Week volunteers.

In its first plea for volunteers, the RNZFB shared the story of Waikato woman Jessie Main, who has volunteered for 41 of the last 42 Blind Week appeals, and isn’t letting age hold her back from volunteering again this year.

Jessie’s story has clearly inspired many new volunteers, with the RNZFB signing up about half the number of volunteers they need.

Jeanette Manson, RNZFB Divisional Manager Fundraising says, “Thousands of people giving up their time to help us is phenomenal, but we still need another 6,600 volunteers around the country to fill some gaps for us.

“If anyone else in the regions can spare a few hours during Blind Week to help collect, we would really appreciate it. After all, we say that we can’t afford for you not to see us, and we want to make sure that we’re really unmissable out there during Blind Week!”

The number of volunteers still needed in each region is:

Auckland/Northland 2,000 Waikato 1,000 Bay of Plenty 500 Hawkes Bay/ Poverty Bay 300 Wellington/Taranaki 1,000 Nelson/ Marlborough 300 Canterbury/ West Coast 1,000 Otago/Southland 500

Blind Week 2003 runs from 28 October to 3 November, and again features the campaign message of “We can’t afford for you not to see us”.

People interested in being part of this huge effort can phone 0800 002 345 and be connected with their nearest RNZFB regional fundraising manager.

Volunteers can also register on-line at the RNZFB website www.rnzfb.org.nz.

The RNZFB hopes to raise more than $1 million to help provide essential services for blind and vision-impaired New Zealanders – services that help its members to challenge their sight loss while maintaining their independence.

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