Saskatonians 'Dine in the Dark' for fundraiser

For blind people, simple things like finding the salt and pepper shakers on a table can be difficult.

At a "Dine in the Dark" fundraiser in Saskatoon Thursday, people had the chance to experience how that feels firsthand.

Al Stickley donned a blindfold at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind dinner and said it was eye-opening.

"You're not sure you're not going to poke yourself with the fork for one thing... You have to hold onto your food or you might send it flying as well," Stickney said.

"I could see how frustrating that would be for a visually impaired person," he added.

Charlene Young served as the dinner guide for the evening and helped participants through each course of the meal. The 27-year-old has been blind since birth, and hopes people will come to understand blind and visually impaired people better.

"People who come to these events take things for granted every day because they don't know what it's like, you know, to have to pour cream into a cup of coffee or to figure out what clothes match with... you know, that kind of thing," Young said.