In March 2021, my friends, Ciara and Grace and I took part in the Irish Guide Dogs Transition year programme held virtually this year. During the week, we learned so much about Guide dogs like how they are trained, how they are breed, how the puppies are raised, about Irish guide dog clients and lots more. We all really enjoyed this programme and learning about the dogs. We learnt things that we did not know, like Irish guide dogs support people who are visually impaired and they also support children and families with autism.

Irish Guide dogs have so many services to offer like;

Guide dog programme,

Assistance dog program,

Community dog programme,

Orientation and mobility training,

Child mobility training,

Independent living skills training and

Education and employment skills training.

After finishing the course, we decided we wanted to run a fundraiser in school for Irish Guide dogs. Our aim was to raise as much money as possible for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind and to raise as much awareness in our school about Irish Guide dogs.

In order to fundraise money for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind (IGDB), we held an event where first years to transition years would have the opportunity to experience what being visually impaired is actually like. They encountered the struggles faced by nearly 250,000 people in Ireland everyday, making them realize just how much of a difference it makes to have someone (like a guide dog) to support them.

On Thursday 6th May 2021, we took out two classes at a time for the activities (one class in the hall/one in the astroturf) per 40 minute class period. For each 40 minute class, we ran a blindfolded activity. In this activity, students were put in pairs. One person was blindfolded and the other was the ‘eyes’ of the group.

We had 4 pitches in both areas, 4 people were in each pitch. In the pitch, one person from each pair was blindfolded and we played 'goal ball' where the blindfolded person had to try to shoot into goals where another blindfolded person was trying to block their shot. The ‘eyes of the group’ had to navigate the other member where to shoot and where to block. Everyone enjoyed it and had a great time while experiencing how hard it is to be visually impaired.

The day was a huge success and we raised €620 for a fantastic cause.

Here are some pictures from our Irish Guide Dog Day!