Pride of Britain Fundraiser Finalist 2022: Ian Wood

  • The second finalist for the Channel Island's Pride of Britain Fundraiser off the year is Ian Wood

A man from Guernsey has used his passion of selling rare, valuable stamps to raise thousands of pounds for the Guernsey Blind Association.Ian Wood, who has had a long career selling stamps professionally, has been fundraising for the charity for the past 10 years. He has donated thousands of pounds to ensure the charity can carry on doing its work.

For Ian, the charity means a lot to him after living with a family member who was blind.

He said: "when I was aged 8-21 I lived with my aunt who was registered blind and she was such a lovely person and couldn't do enough for me.

"I decided when I got on my feet I want to be able to repay that."

The Guernsey Blind Association rely on donations, fundraisers and sponsors to continue the work they do. Credit: ITV Channel Television

The volunteers at the Guernsey Blind Association told ITV that Ian's support and fundraising over the years has been invaluable.

Debbie Clarke, Guernsey Blind Association, said: "without him we wouldn't have had all that funding for the last 10 years and he's really stuck with us.

"We do have businesses who sponsor us for a year and then want to support another charity. But Ian has stuck with us, selling his stamps. It's fantastic."

Chantelle Tucker from the charity said: "we have no government funding so without the donations from our volunteers we couldn't carry on doing the work we do and the support we give.

"Especially in these times and since Covid. The economy is tight, financial assistance is needed. We've also got an ageing population and the number of age related problems are getting more prevalent."

The Channel Islands' winner will be revealed during ITV Channel's evening news at 6pm on Friday 30 September, with the Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards due to take place in November.