News

6th July – Coffee and cake day with local military charity

Worcester residents are invited to attend a morning of coffee and cake hosted by Blind Veterans UK, the charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women.

The event, which will run from 10:00am – 12:00pm on Thursday 6 July, will be held at the Guildhall.

Victoria Beech, Regional Fundraiser, says: “As an organisation we are very aware that there are many more veterans out there that could benefit from our support. They just need to know that we are here for them. This event will be a great way to raise our profile in the Worcester area, ensuring that no vision-impaired veteran in the area is forced to battle sight loss alone.”

Read more

Blind veteran from Churchill to receive prestigious medal for helping liberate France from the Nazis

A Second World War blind veteran from Churchill is to be formally presented with the Chevalier de l’Ordre National de la Legion d’Honneur for his part in the liberation of France.

Peter Johnson, 91 and from Churchill, will be presented with the prestigious honour by Josette Lebrat, the Honorary French Consul of Bristol, on behalf of French President Emmanuel Macron. The special ceremony will take place at a reunion lunch held in Bristol and organised by Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for blind and vision-impaired ex-Service men and women, from whom Peter receives support.

Read more

Army Reservist from Wandsworth to take on mammoth 100km challenge for military charity

An Army Reservist from Wandsworth is training to compete in a 100km walk from London to Brighton for Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women.

Major Drew Craig, Officer Commanding 579 Field Squadron Royal Engineers – part of 101 (City of London) Regiment, Royal Engineers – will be tackling the epic challenge with members of his squadron.

Read more

Blind veteran able to rediscover passion for museums with help of Durham volunteer

A blind veteran from Durham has been able to reignite his interest in museums with the help of a volunteer from Durham.

Michael Gray, 73 has been visiting various museums since January with Robin Trounson, a volunteer from Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women.

Robin says: “Michael likes museums but unfortunately his enthusiasm is not shared by his family, so he rarely gets the chance to visit them!

Read more

Blind veteran from Hampshire reaches finals of the prestigious Holman Prize

A blind veteran from Hampshire who has been invited to compete in the inaugural Holman Prize has reached the final round.

Penny Melville-Brown OBE, from Fareham, has been selected as one of the 11 finalists from over 200 original entries. Run by the San Francisco Lighthouse organisation, three winners will be awarded $25,000 to achieve their ambitions. Penny’s goal is to cook across six continents with her online Baking Project, Baking Blind.

Read more

US and UK veterans’ charities host first “Life Beyond Sight Loss” seminar bringing world-renowned experts together to tackle sight loss

A research seminar bringing world-renowned experts together to discuss sight loss was held in London this week (24/05). The “Life Beyond Sight Loss” Seminar was the first in a series looking at various research and innovation ideas in relation to blind veterans.

The seminar was part of an exchange programme called Project Gemini where members of the US organisation the Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) will be visiting Britain to join Blind Veterans UK this week.

Read more

Staff from military charity drive through 24 countries in five days to raise money for blind veterans

Two members of staff from a national military charity have driven through an incredible 24 countries in just five days. The funds raised will be going to the blind veterans their charity supports.

Chief of Staff, Nathan Muirhead and Head of Transport, Chris Kirk are both employees of Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaierd ex-Service men and women.

The drive, which took place from Monday 8 – Friday 12 May, saw Nathan and Chris take in an incredible 24 countries, including but not limited to, France, Switzerland, Albania, Kosovo, Serbia and Turkey. Chris says: “It was a huge challenge.

Read more

Mile End woman to take on Royal Parks Half Marathon for military charity that supported her grandfather

A woman from Mile End is training to compete in the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon for Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women, after it supported her late grandfather.

Hana Barten, 23 and originally from Colchester, decided she wanted to give something back to the charity in memory of her grandfather. She says: “I really wanted to do some fundraising for Blind Veterans UK in memory of my beloved grandfather. They really helped him towards the end of his life, so after taking a look at their website, I decided that the Royal Parks Half Marathon would be a good one to do!

Read more

US and UK veterans’ charities to host first “Life Beyond Sight Loss” seminar bringing world-renowned experts together to tackle sight loss

Media Invite – Photo and Interview opportunity
When: Wednesday 24 May – 13:00
Where: Victory Services Club, 63-79 Seymour St, London, W2 2HF

A research seminar bringing world-renowned experts together to discuss sight loss will be taking place in London this week (24/05). The “Life Beyond Sight Loss” Seminar is the first in a series looking at various research and innovation ideas in relation to blind veterans.

The seminar is part of an exchange programme called Project Gemini where members of the US organisation the Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) will be visiting Britain to join Blind Veterans UK this week.

Read more

Two blind D-Day veterans from Dorset receive prestigious medal for helping liberate France from the Nazis

Two Second World War blind veterans from Dorset were formally presented with the Chevalier de l’Ordre National de la Légion D’Honneur yesterday for their part in the liberation of France.

Peter Oliver, 89 from Bournemouth, and Edward Gaines, 92 from Poole, were presented with the prestigious honour by Capt. Francois Jean, the Honorary French Consul, on behalf of French president Emmanuel Macron, they were the first D-Day veterans to receive the honour on behalf of France’s new president.

Read more
Items 511 to 520 of 579
Our Executive Members

By @Cobseo 55 years ago

Afghanistan support

In light of recent events in Afghanistan, please find information and support resources here