Hearing Link volunteer presented with Heather Jackson Award
Hearing Link volunteer John Newton has been presented with the Heather Jackson Award during a celebration event recently.
The Heather Jackson Award is presented jointly by the National Association of Deafened People (NADP), Signature, and Hearing Link. It is awarded to a person who has made a significant contribution to the improvement of the welfare and opportunity of deafened people.
John was diagnosed with mild hearing loss when he was at university, and in 2009 received a cochlear implant. A retired industrial engineer, John was nominated for his volunteering with Hearing Link, a charity which provides life-changing support to people with hearing loss, where he has taken on many varied roles in recent years. These include facilitating group support programmes for people with hearing loss, delivering talks, representing the charity at events and supporting people on a one-to-one basis through the charity’s Helpdesk and as a community volunteer.
John said: “I’ve never thought of myself as more than an idle retiree doing a bit of volunteering, amply rewarded by the immense satisfaction I get out of it, particularly working for Hearing Link and its group support programmes. Of course, I knew the Heather Jackson Award existed and knew enough about Heather to regret that I never met her, but I had always felt that she and other winners of the award were in a different category to me. I’m afraid this might sound like self-deprecatory false modesty, but it’s a genuine feeling. The award stands proudly on my mantle piece.”
Ross Trotter, former Chairman of the NADP, said: “John is a very worthy winner of the Heather Jackson Award. I have known him for a number of years and always admired his selfless dedication to helping others at an age when most people would be putting their feet up. John embodies all the qualities that made Heather so special – a willingness to take on new tasks, a keen interest in all aspects of deafness, and above all an empathy and understanding of what difficulties people face. I am delighted to have been able to make this presentation to John.”
If you would like to find out more about volunteering with Hearing Link, visit our website or email enquiries@hearinglink.org