Hi, it’s William here this week writing about a charity auction this November at Weymouth and Portland Sailing Academy.

I was asked by Laura if I would like to go and help at the auction, which IT365 were organising, to help raise funds for People First Dorset.

I felt very privileged and proud to be representing the charity, along with my friend Peter.

Our jobs on the night were to not only hand out canapes, but to talk to the guests about what we do at People First Dorset.

We had a special guest, Paul Attenbury from the Antiques Roadshow, who told us about what goes on behind the scenes there.

It was really interesting to hear about the other presenters and his experiences of being on this show.

I told him about the Friendship Club and that I write in the Dorset Echo every week, so I hope he’s reading it today. Thank you Paul if you are!

The auctioneer was Matthew Denny, who was very laid back and funny.

He got everyone laughing about some the lots which made it a lot of fun. Louise from IT365 was his sidekick for the night and showed off the different items.

There were some great items for sale, including reading the weather on Wessex FM.

I think my favourite was the Dinosaur Museum Family Ticket and also the portrait offer from Paul Valentine, because he is a really good artist.

We raised almost £2,000 on the night, which is really good for the charity, as we need donations to keep the charity going, so our members can get the support we need.

I would like to say thank you to Louise Matthews from IT365 and Nigel Reeve for all their work in helping us have such a successful night.

The writers of the Our View column are supported in their editing by The Friendship Club– a project for adults with learning disabilities, run by People First Dorset