Farewell to the Blind Vets

Year 8 students and the Year 12 CAP group hosted a lovely tea-party for the residents of the Blind Veterans this week.

In recent years, we have worked closely with them, particularly Year 8, who have raised £3000 for them this year, and the CAP group on Wednesday afternoons. After 85 years of being our neighbours, the Blind Veterans is relocating to new premises along the coast in Rustington, so this event was to say good luck and farewell. The Blind Veterans plan to use the funds raised to purchase art work for their new library, providing a lasting legacy of the Roedean-Blind Veterans partnership.

Almen and Khadija in Year 8 opened the event, detailing their experiences of working with the Blind Veterans, and Paloma and Gracie in Year 12 also shared their reflections on what they had learnt over the course of the year. The spoken elements were interspersed by lovely musical items, performed by Abi, Emily, Alissandra, and Maria form Year 12, Holly, Scarlett, and Natalie from Year 8, and Rachel from Year 10, and they all received hearty applause from our guests.

We presented the Blind Veterans with a framed picture with connections to the School, and, in return, we were given a beautiful piece featuring butterflies, which had been made by the residents in the craft workshop – the intricate detail is wonderful, and it will remind us of our partnership for many years to come.

The afternoon ended with an amazing cake, made by Mrs Sambrook in the Catering Department – it looked amazing, and tasted better! Thank you to Mr Wilson, who has spearheaded this partnership over the years, and to Ms Bartlette, who has led the CAP Musicians.

We hope that we will be able to visit the new site next year, but, for now, good luck and farewell!

Dr Barrand