Determined fundraiser smashes £10K target in support of sight loss research
A determined Fight for Sight supporter has smashed her £10K target after two years of fundraising events– from a rugby match and a charity dinner to pub quizzes and cake sales.
Twenty-year-old Megan Davies said she is “feeling so emotional” after exceeding her own expectations and hitting the total target in half the time she set herself.
Her aim was to raise money for vital sight loss research and help increase awareness on retinal pigment damage in her community and beyond.
The cause is close to her heart, having been diagnosed with the condition at the age of 16.
Since then, she has been determined to help others like herself who are affected by the condition.
She reached her fundraising goal earlier this month by hosting a pub quiz that helped raise £720.
Speaking about her amazing efforts, she told us: “I couldn’t be happier! This has proven to me how amazing the people around me really are. I know I want to continue fighting for a difference. I want to be doing everything I can to hopefully one day be able to change someone else’s life.”
Among the number of events Megan hosted was a charity rugby match between Throney RUFC v Peterborough Welsh in 2019 and a charity dinner with 120 people, which helped raise £4500 this year.
Megan’s story
After having relatively good eyesight throughout her life, Megan first noticed a few years ago that it was more difficult to see the board at school. Thinking she needed glasses, Megan went to the optician for an eye test. She was shocked to discover there had been a dramatic change to how much of the eye chart she could read.
Megan was referred to Oxford Eye Hospital where she saw Dr Issa and his specialist team and underwent genetic and specialist testing. It was discovered that a variant in one of the genes in her eyes was causing the problem, but there was no current explanation as to why.
There is currently no cure for Megan’s condition, but she is undergoing regular tests at Oxford Eye Hospital in the hope a treatment will soon be found. Fight for Sight fund vital early-stage research into a range of conditions that have already led to new treatments for some retinal diseases, and with more funding further breakthroughs are possible.
Megan said: “This is why I chose to raise money for Fight for Sight because they fund so much research into sight loss conditions and searching for treatments. A breakthrough could help so many people, not just me.”
“What an incredible achievement! We are so touched by Megan’s commitment to our cause. From the moment she set her goal, she has shown such passion and determination to reach her target. Megan is hugely inspiring and a wonderful example of what can be achieved. Her fantastic fundraising effort will help us to fund vital research and give hope to thousands of people with sight loss this Christmas.”
-Ikram Dahman, Chief Executive (Interim)