Norfolk’s sight loss charity has been given a £1,000 boost thanks to comedian Chris McCausland, who opted to support the organisation during his recent three-show residency at Norwich’s Theatre Royal.
The Strictly Come Dancing champion allowed Vision Norfolk to organise a bucket collection at each of his shows at the theatre, raising funds to support the work the charity does to help people living with sight loss across the county.
As well as raising more than £1,000 in donations, the initiative helped raise awareness of the issues facing vision impaired people, and the work that Vision Norfolk does to support them.
McCausland played three sell-out shows at the Theatre Royal as part of his ‘Yonks’ tour, with around 3,6000 people attending the Norwich leg of the tour.
“We are so grateful to Chris McCausland for his support and for allowing us to be part of such an incredible event,” said Carol Hall, marketing and fundraising executive at Vision Norfolk. “His support has made a real difference to our charity and to the vision impaired community here in Norfolk. We also want to thank John Long and the whole team at Theatre Royal Norwich for their support.”
One of the volunteers taking part in the collection was Scott Vallance, who is himself vision impaired, and who attended with his guide dog Ross. “Chris McCausland has been such an inspiration to me. Ross and I had a fantastic day, and it was amazing meeting him. We were proud to be raising awareness and funds for such a great charity,” he said.
Vision Norfolk is marking its 200th anniversary in 2025, and has mounted a challenge to raise £220,000 during the year. More details about the charity, and how to get involved in the fundraising challenge, can be found at www.visionnorfolk.org.uk.