Winner donates prize to charity

Pippa Reid won the glasses in a raffle run by the Vision Express team in Horsham and decided to donate her prize back to the store with the value of them going into their charity pot.

The store ran the raffle to raise money for chosen charity Childhood Eye Cancer Trust which aims to help children and families who suffer from a rare form of eye cancer called retinoblastoma.

Pippa said: “It is no effort on my part.

“It is a terrific charity and anything that can be done to help raise money is worth it.”

Olivia Deane,17, from Horsham is a patron of the charity and came down to accept the gift from Pippa.

The teenager was diagnosed with the disease when she was 12 years old and is a rare case as the condition is usually only found in babies and small children.

She said that it is vital for more people know about the condition and this donation will help to raise awareness.

She said: “I am really grateful. I really appreciate what Pippa has done. It is really good.”

So far the total raised from the raffle and the donation has reached £1,300.

But this is set to rise dramatically on Friday as colleagues from Vision Express stores across the country take part in a two day bike ride for the charity.

Rob Eatwell, who works at the Horsham store, will be part of a team of 40 other riders who will be cycling over two days from the Olympic stadium in Stratford to the Vision Express central office in Nottingham.

He said: “ I am very much looking forward to it.

“I have been cycling to work three or four times a week for the last six months come rain or shine in preparation.”

The team are aiming to raise more than £25,000 from the ride to go towards helping the charity.

To donate to the drive visit https://www.justgiving.com/ride4sight2014/