A Few words from our resident chair CHRIS BLOOR....

 

We are a local group run by local people who have made it their personal goal to raise funds for the following:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The group consists entirely of volunteers with no paid officers who organise fundraising events such as; Jumble Sales, Spring & Christmas Fairs, Sponsored Walks, Coffee mornings and of course our annual Grand Draw. We also attend local events such as Carnivals, Open Days and Community organised events. Besides raising funds we also have monthly meetings, which are either talks or a social event to raise the AWARENESS of Diabetes within the communities we reside.

 

Our group is made up of individuals and their families who have been affected by Diabetes and also their supporters. Some of these individuals have taken up posts, such as; Chair Person, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Public Relations Officer, etc. All are unpaid positions just as are our army of volunteers. We all have a common goal in mind, TO RAISE FUNDS to enable us to keep our aims and objectives on course and so benefit all with diabetes. We also run this website full of information as to our activities and also produce a newsletter which is free and printed four times a year.

 

Over the last few years besides our fundraising activities we have been involved in other several issues concerning Diabetes and care in North Staffordshire, this meant we have had to organise petitions and campaigns to get our voices heard. These have been very successful and are producing pleasing results each week that goes by. Some issues have been relatively easy to deal with like the testing strips that should be issued free by GPs; the successful results came about due to the "Letters" pages in "The Sentinel."

 

We also have a screening campaign which is to ensure each year a photograph is taken of a patient's retina; this reveals previously undetected problems and allows them to be treated before it's too late. 

A lifetime's treatment for a patient with Retinopathy is very expensive compared to discovering a problem earlier on by having at least one photograph a year. This also gives the patient more confidence and less worry as they know that this simple activity will keep them up to date with the condition of their eyes.  Then we had the campaign about the closure of the "Nines Block"

(Ward 60 / 61), due to the media involvement (Dave Blackhurst of "The Sentinel") and the amount of signatures collected (over 1,000 in 5 weeks) in protest of the closure without an alternative place being allocated.  We were invited to a meeting with the hospital senior management, which resulted in an invite to have two representatives on the "Steering Group Panel" during the building of the new hospital.

 

Our campaigns meant that we were recognised by many of the NHS Senior Officers and the local MPs, due to this we were invited to attend Westminster to put forward the views of the people of North Staffordshire. Our Vice Chair Mrs. Chris Bloor & Sharon Sutton who stood as our spokesperson did this very successfully.

 

So as you can see not only are we there to do our main task FUNDRAISING but we are also there to represent all those affected by Diabetes and their families and carers. To do this we do need your help so if you can spare any time to assist in one or more of our events you are very welcome, or maybe you feel that you cannot really commit but would like to help with a donation, then please know that every little helps to reach our targets. Below is a statement that any voluntary group will tell you is TRUE....

 

                                      ........................................Volunteers Are Priceless!