Plaque unveiled marking local firm’s support for visual impairment charity
Staff at Vincents Solicitors say they are honoured to be recognised with a place on the Galloways “Wall of Fame”.
A plaque has been unveiled to acknowledge the support Vincents has provided to the sight loss charity over recent years.
The Lancashire law firm is not only a corporate sponsor, as members of the 1867 club, but individual employees have also taken the charity to heart and raised money themselves.
Jemma Lloyd, head of Vincents Solicitors’ Penwortham branch, is one of those who has dedicated her own time to the charity. She took part in the inaugural I’m a Celebrity-style challenge in 2024 – which involved eating raw herring and handling creepy crawlies bugs – raising hundreds for the charity.
She said: “Galloways does such amazing work and supports so many people in our local community, and we know our donations go directly to helping people in our area.
“Ever since I first met the Galloways team I’ve been committed to supporting them and it’s been wonderful to see my colleagues develop their own sense of pride in being involved.
“The charity empowers people with visual impairments to live independently and not be defined by their disability, and anything we can do to help support that aim is worth our time and efforts.”
Felicity Fazackerley was last year’s victim for Get Me Out Of Here and raised £500 for the charity after bravely facing challenges like holding giant bugs and snakes.
She said: “I’m not a huge fan of creepy crawlies and dark spaces, so this really was a challenge for me and the people who donated knew I would hate every minute. In the end it was a really uplifting experience, to face my fears with a lovely group of people doing the same, knowing we were raising money for such a brilliant cause.”
The team also supports Galloways’ annual fundraising ball and holds events at the charity’s headquarters in Howick Park Avenue in Penwortham, making an additional donation for room rental.
This month Vincents is also holding a series of talks in Chorley, Penwortham and Garstang in partnership with Galloways, providing information on Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney. Galloways’ service users will also be able to get a free Will with Vincents in return for making a donation to the charity and leaving a gift in their Will.
Galloways has a variety of fundraisers coming up over the next year which anyone can join in with including padel court events, a golf day, seven-a-side football, Walking Blackpool’s ‘Big One’, a Big Sleep Out, another Get Me Out of Here challenge.
New for this year will be ‘Strictly Corp Dancing’ which included four weeks of professional dance training and the final will be held at the Stanley House Hotel in Mellor.
Kelly Love from Galloways said: “I was absolutely delighted to unveil the Vincents Solicitors plaque on our Wall of Fame. The team is so lovely and has has done so much for us over the years, it was important for us to share our gratitude and thanks with them.
“The charity needs to raise £1.5m every year to continue providing support to people living with sight loss across Lancashire and Sefton, so having the Vincents team on our side, along with all the local businesses which help us, is incredibly important.”
For more information about fundraising events at Galloways or to find out about the services the charity offers to people with sight impairment go to: https://galloways.org.uk
Pictured: Vincents Solicitors’ Jemma Lloyd and Felicity Fazackerley with Kelly Love from Galloways as she unveils the new plaque on the Wall of Fame