Visually impaired brothers raise £300 for Guide Dogs at Heaton Park race

Two Whitworth youngsters who were recently registered blind took part in the Use Your Senses 5K Manchester race at Heaton Park on Saturday 10 August 2019.

Brothers, Oliver Poulter, age 12, and Leo Poulter, who celebrated his 5th birthday on the day of the race, took part in the run with their dad, Damion, and raised a total of £300 for The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association.

The siblings were both registered visually impaired up until 1 June this year, when a consultant at the Manchester Royal Eye Hospital confirmed the boys are now registered severely sight impaired/blind, as both their sight had deteriorated.

The brothers' lack of vision is the result of a degenerative condition called optic atrophy, a condition that affects the optic nerve carrying impulses from the eye to the brain. Older brother, Oliver, was diagnosed with optic atrophy at the age of 4, whereas Leo was diagnosed at 18 months old.

Mother, Samantha Poulter said: “The boys asked to raise money for a charity that helps other blind people. When we searched online we found the run at Heaton Park to raise money for the guide dogs.

“The day was really inspiring for my boys as they heard from blind adults who live completely independent lives with full time jobs, with support from guide dogs, and have good social lives.

“They loved meeting the guide dogs and hearing about the training they do and the cost it entails to provide the service to visually impaired people.

“Oliver is currently being trained to use a long cane and is also learning Braille, which is something Leo will also do soon.

“They both attend Samba dance in Whitworth and Leo in particular is a very keen dancer who does ballet, tap, street and break dance and hopes to be on the stage one day.”

The 5K run offered sensory experiences along the route at five different sense stations, including tasting sour sweets, smelling scented bubbles, looking at colours with powder paint thrown on you, listening to live music and touching foam as you ran through a foam pit.

Use Your Senses is a regular 5K hosted by Guide Dogs, with the aim to change the lives of families living with sight loss.