Passionate supporter galvanises her community to hit 25K goal before turning 25
There is no challenge too big for a 21-year-old Fight for Sight supporter who is determined to raise £25K to help others like herself who are experiencing sight loss.
After hitting a £10K fundraising goal last year, Megan Davies says she is set on raising another £15K for sight-saving research by the time she turns 25.
Feeling inspired to do more, she is kicking off the latest round of fundraising on August 14th with a quiz at the local pub.
She told us:
“When I hit £10K, I wasn’t expecting to get there so quickly. I had set myself five years to achieve that so the fact that I hit my target within two years made me feel so touched. I thought: I’m really not done with this, there’s more I can do. So I sat my family down and told them. I wanted to make sure we were all on the same wavelength and we can all join in to help raise the money.”
Determined to help
Five years after being told by doctors about retinal pigment damage in her eyes, years of tests and no concrete answers on her condition, Megan is more determined than ever to raise awareness for others going through a similar experience.
She said:
“When I first heard about my condition, I was very insecure about it. At the time I was struggling with my mental health and I was depressed. I was trying to process all of it but it was so difficult. You almost have to grieve the person you were before. It took me two years to fully be able to talk about it. When I turned 18, I decided I couldn’t keep hiding this from people. It made me realise that blindness and vision impairment in general aren’t spoken about enough. People don’t realise the spectrum of conditions that affect people in so many different ways. And if I went through that I knew others would be too. Now, I want to help as much as I can.”
Megan first noticed her sight changing at school, when she started struggling to read the board.
She eventually did an eye test and realised she could only read three lines down. She tried out every lens and had her eyes scanned at the opticians, only to be told that something doesn’t look right.
After a referral to a specialist hospital in Oxford and a six-month wait for a DNA test result, she was told that the root of the problem was a faulty gene variant.
After two years of regular testing, doctors advised that there is no way of knowing how the condition will develop and affect her sight in the long-term.
Retelling her story, Megan acknowledges how far eye research has come and is excited to get her family, friends, and her local community back together again to work towards her goal.
Resilience and strength
Ikram Dahman, Deputy CEO at Fight for Sight, said:
“It means the world to us to have Megan’s support. She shows such resilience and strength in telling her story and devoting herself to fundraising and raising awareness to change the narrative and help others. The way she has galvanised her community is so touching. She is an inspiration to us all and we are so proud to see everything she continues to achieve.”
There is currently no cure for Megan’s condition, but she continues to undergo regular tests in the hope a treatment will soon be found.
Significant progress is being made in this research area, with groundbreaking processes like whole genome sequencing leading the way in the search for underlying genetic causes behind rare inherited sight loss conditions.
To donate to Megan's herculean fundraising efforts, click here.