An occupational therapy student from Abergele is preparing to climb Wales’ highest peak, Snowden, while completely blindfolded to raise awareness for Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for vision-impaired ex-Service men and women.
Izzy Jones, 19 and currently studying in York, will be embarking on the challenge on Sunday June 4. Having volunteered at the charity’s training and rehabilitation centre in Llandudno for the past three years, she was keen to push herself physically to demonstrate her support for the veterans it supports. She says: “I’ve met unforgettable people that have impacted both me as a person and how I look at my own life.
“The rehabilitation and training they have available is brilliant and can make a big difference to their lives.”
Izzy, who volunteers for the charity’s fundraising team in centre-based activities, is known amongst her friends for constantly seeking out new challenges. Alongside her upcoming trek, she’s also completed a number of Tough Mudder challenges.
To ensure she is as prepared as possible, Izzy has been working on her walking techniques while walking blindfolded with friends. Come June 4, the charity’s Regional Fundraising Assistant, Suzanne Evanson, will be acting as her sighted guide partner.
Izzy maintains that, thanks to her studies in occupational therapy, she’s gained more confidence in terms of the support and service she’s been able to provide to the charity, which provides life-long support to its beneficiaries. She says: “A fundamental belief of the charity is that there is life beyond sight loss, which I couldn’t agree with more”.
To support Izzy as she prepares to climb Snowden blindfolded, please visit: justgiving.com/IzzyJones1
Blind Veterans UK was founded in 1915 and the charity’s initial purpose was to help and support soldiers blinded in the First World War. But the organisation has gone on to support more than 35,000 blind veterans and their families, spanning WWII to recent conflicts including Iraq and Afghanistan.
Blind Veterans UK currently supports over 4,500 veterans, more than ever before in the charity’s history. We have set an ambitious target to double the number of veterans receiving our life changing support to over 8,000 by 2022.
For more than a century, the charity has been providing vital free training, rehabilitation, equipment and emotional support to blind and vision-impaired veterans no matter when they served or how they lost their sight. Visit blindveterans.org.uk/support to learn more about the charity and how you can support its vital work today.
For all media enquiries please contact: Felix Arbenz-Caines, PR Assistant, Blind Veterans UK, 12 – 14 Harcourt Street, London, W1H 4HD, E: Felix.Arbenz-Caines@blindveterans.org.uk, T: 020 7616 7941
Notes to Editor
Blind Veterans UK
Blind Veterans UK is a national charity that believes that no-one who has served our country should have to battle blindness alone. Founded in 1915, the charity provides blind and vision impaired ex-Service men and women with lifelong support including welfare support, rehabilitation, training, residential and respite care.
Find out more at: blindveterans.org.uk, follow us on Facebook at: facebook.com/blindveteransuk and on Twitter at: twitter.com/blindveterans.
