A NI mum has told how a sight loss charity has supported her family after her daughter was born without her left eye.
For the first time in over two years, blind and partially sighted children from Northern Ireland met face-to-face.
On Saturday, 21st May, 20 families were brought together by sight loss charity RNIB at Belfast’s W5 for a day out.
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The Rainey family from Moira have been supported by RNIB for seven years. Fern Rainey is 8-years-old and has unilateral anopthalmia, which means she was born without her left eye.
Mum Lynsey said: “We’ve been in contact with RNIB since Fern was about six months. We would go to the toddler groups to let Fern and my son Ted, aged 6, meet lots of other kids that have visual impairments.
“We have been lucky enough to attend lots of RNIB face-to-face meet ups in the past in the hopes we would meet someone with a similar condition to Fern.
“Kids get bored over FaceTime, there’s no substitute for real life connections. Ten minutes speaking to another mum who understands the struggles of hospital appointments and the social worries having a child with additional needs can bring, is the best kind of therapy.
“And when kids are exposed to any kind of disability it can only be a positive thing. They don’t think twice if someone uses a cane or looks a bit different to them now. They know everyone needs a friend and we should always smile and say hello.”
Speaking to Be, Lynsey added: "We've been attending the artificial eye clinic and through them we contacted RNIB.
"Through these meetings with RNIB, we haven't been to one since Covid, so it was well overdue but it was just lovely to meet parents who understood.
"Ten minutes with a parent that understands the emotional trauma and the hospital appointments, and the worries that you have, it's better than any type of therapy.
"The kids are surrounded by all sorts of disabilities and differences so they are very accepting because of these meet ups. They don't think twice if they see someone with a cane or anyone that looks a bit different to them, it's just another child they can be friends with."
The Children, Young People and Family Team from RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People) in Northern Ireland was the first to be able to host the charity’s popular Shape and Share events in a face-to-face setting since the start of the Covid 19 pandemic.
Prior to this, RNIB’s Shape and Share events – which aim to encourage children and young people with vision impairment to make new friends, try new things, and engage in some much-needed fun, had been held virtually across the UK.
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