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Trustees

 

Chairperson/Trustee – Judith Robson

Before I lost my sight in 2003 I was an ordinary mum to three teenage boys. I had trained as a teacher when I left school. I then spent eleven years as a civil servant working in the Department of Health and Social Security. In 1987 I left work to have my first son followed in 1990 and 1992 by two more sons. I spent the next fourteen years at home being wife and mum. In 2002 I returned to work at a local school, working in Learning Support, while I completed a return to teaching course. I had just finished the course and was about to begin working as a supply teacher when I suddenly lost my sight. This happened without warning and was due to a number of eye conditions that I was unaware of. This was a traumatic time, not only for me but for my family as well. I went into depression which lasted at least a year. I well remember the terrible feeling of isolation and not knowing where to turn. In 2008 I was introduced to BlindVoice UK. Since becoming involved with the charity I have undertaken tasks that I never thought I would be able to fulfill. BlindVoice UK has given me back my confidence and a purpose in life. I have recently had the privilege of becoming Chair of the charity which provides so much for those with visual disabilities.

 

Secretary/Treasurer – Geoff Garnett

Geoff, a retired civil servant has a wife Vera and a son and daughter. He has been Secretary of BlindVoice UK since its formation in 1997 and is responsible for building the strong position BlindVoice UK is in today. It is thanks to his tireless efforts and strong commitment that has raised an inspiring £200,000 enabling the group to develop a wide range of activities and services. This culminated in the award of a major grant from the Community Fund in 2004 enabling BlindVoice UK to employ its first full-time Manager and to open a Communication Centre for the Blind. Geoff works tirelessly on many issues surrounding blindness and a great many people owe their thanks to his hard work and time.

Some of the projects he has implemented include Braille for the Sighted, Safety issues for blind pedestrians and the provision audio description at Darlington Civic Theatre.

Geoff regards the most significant factor in the progress made by BlindVoice UK is the development of a superb team of Trustees headed by a full time Manager. Excellent training provided by the Directory of Social Change (funded by Northern Rock) has added skills to the commitment and enthusiasm of the Trustees who are now well able to effectively manage the future development of BlindVoice UK.

Geoff has laid the foundations for the future of BlindVoice UK and is thrilled that the hopes and dreams of George Glass and Ann Kallagher and the other frustrated people who met in the Mulberry Tree back in 1997 will surely be fulfilled.

 

Trustee – Raymond Feakes

I have been a trustee of BlindVoice UK for a number of years, and I have thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the cut and thrust of the monthly meetings. We have an excellent team of Trustees and dedicated employees, without whom the charity would not exist. As well as being a trustee I am involved in many social activities, including socialising/dining out, archery, quiz nights, ten-pin bowling, attending symphony concerts and attending the theatre. I am also attending Information Technology lessons where I am learning to use the internet.  

 

Trustee – Joy Lloyd

After three score years and ten my life changed dramatically when I was diagnosed with macular myopic degeneration. At this time I was invited to a group of people called Stockton Blind People’s Voice.

 My hobbies and interests are genealogy, socializing, eating out and football. The members of the group were very encouraging and helpful, especially a young lady who offered me counseling which greatly assisted in developing my life after being plunged into darkness. With all the input from her and members of the society I was able to take up the challenge once again and take a more positive step forward and after five years of struggling the pieces of the jigsaw are going together. I was honoured to be invited to become a trustee and am determined to serve the society well.

 

Trustee – Jim Callaghan

In May 2009 I almost stumbled into the BlindVoice office one Friday evening by mistake. I was looking for a volunteering opportunity, as I had recently retired as a Languages and PE teacher, after a career spanning some 30 odd years. Little did I know what lay ahead! I was very quickly recruited as a volunteer and given some initial training.

Following this, I have had the pleasure of meeting, and hopefully helping, some great visually impaired people. I’m always astounded by what they achieve. It’s a privilege to participate in the many social activities and I now help with some of the audio recording service. In the Spring of 2011 I was delighted to be asked to become a Trustee and hope to support the work of the whole team in improving the lives of the visually impaired.

 

Trustee - Nadeem Mughal

After leaving school, I studied at a residential college for Blind people in Birmingham which didn’t provide the course I sought, so left the college disappointed. I then went to a day centre, meeting other people with different disabilities and saw that if they could cope with their disabilities, so could I. BlindVoice UK assisted and supported me in trying to gain confidence, so that I could enrol at another college for visually impaired people in Hereford, where I did word processing, mobility training and other general studies. In the 2^nd year I did an NVQ Level 2 course in Business Studies, but I was unable to complete the course. I left the college with good qualifications, but it was difficult to find work.

I manage to find a work placement at Stockton International Family Centre, which lasted for 12 weeks. After completing my work placement I was fortunate enough to be employed at Stockton Family Centre. Where I worked for more than 4 years, I carried out a variety of administration duties. This included typing documents on behalf of colleagues, answering the telephone, operating and maintaining an extensive booking and diary system and dealing with staff enquiries. I also logged staff whereabouts, photocopied and faxed documents, filed and maintained staff meeting minutes, but due to the lack of funding I was made redundant. I then went back to the college in Hereford. Where I completed a course in NVQ business admin level 2 and 3.

I completed a Skilstep course last year at Henshaws Society for Blind People in Newcastle. This is where they had a speaker from Northumbria University come and speak to the students who were on the course and this has inspired me to do the access course.

I am currently doing an English and maths functional skills course at Stockton Riverside College. I hope to progress on to the access course in September.

The reason why I hope to complete the access course is so I can progress on to university. I hope to enrol at Northumbria University to do a degree in Social Sciences.

© 2010

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