Heather Jackson Award recipient 2024
The Heather Jackson Award is made annually to a deafened person who has made a significant contribution to the improvement of the welfare and opportunity of deafened people. Heather was NADP’s Chairman until we lost her to cancer in 2007 after a short illness at the age of 58. A charismatic leader, she was not only a guiding force for NADP but was also a trainer on the residential courses at the LINK Centre (now Hearing Link Services) and President of Hi Kent. All three charities are involved in the award.
We are very happy to announce that Martin Montgomery, has been voted to receive the Heather Jackson Award for this year. Martin was diagnosed with his hearing loss as a child aged five, and it has progressively deteriorated over the years. He now has a bilateral severe sensorineural hearing loss.
Martin was working in finance for the Northern Health & Social Care Trust in Belfast when he applied for a job as Assistant Technical Officer of the Sensory Support Team of the Trust. It was at this point he became a volunteer In Hearing Link’s Connect Hear project in 2018. At the same time Martin also decided on a career change as a trainee associate audiologist, working alongside his studies to become a fully qualified audiologist in 2022, with the South Eastern Heath and Social Care Trust.
His qualities as a volunteer were shown at the launch of Connect Hear. There was a large queue at registration and Martin calmly sat down and said “Looks like you need a hand”. That is typical of him. His main role has been to provide support at Hearing Link’s LinkUp residential courses. He is always exceptionally kind and patient, is able to see multiple aspects of an issue and guide participants to a better understanding of solutions, and also to accept their situation. He is never shy of sharing his experience and expertise as a deaf audiologist. He is working towards further involvement as a volunteer, becoming a programme facilitator.
To fill a gap in support for deafened people Martin set up a monthly group in a coffee shop in Belfast. After a couple of months people began to find out about the group and it was a successful hard of hearing group prior to Covid. Martin has a wealth of knowledge and, having a hearing loss himself, knows how to support others, and is always willing to go the extra mile.
Martin is also a volunteer speaker and has addressed audiences in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. When he was studying to be an audiologist at Queen Margaret University in Scotland he was able to deliver the yearly Hearing Link Services address to students on his course, increasing their understanding of the group of people they would go on to work with.
Martin has always sacrificed his personal time and is quietly dedicated to the improvement of the lives of deafened people. He has great empathy for people, especially those with a hearing loss. He is very positive, always willing to roll up his sleeves and get stuck in whenever needed. He is diligent, encouraging, patient and kind and a worthy recipient of the Heather Jackson Award.
Each year we not only announce the overall winner of the Heather Jackson Award but other people from among the nominees who were runners up. We wanted to do this to show how many dedicated people worthy of the Award there are. The runners up for 2024 are Julia Cruse and Roger Walsh.
Julia Cruse experienced partial sudden hearing loss at the age of 40, followed by more significant drops over several years. She now has no hearing in one ear and reduced hearing in the other. This made her life with family and friends and her work as a history lecturer increasingly challenging.
Following her retirement she has dedicated a huge amount of time to supporting others and raising awareness. She became the main Hearing Link helpdesk contact for those with sudden hearing loss, bringing them comfort from her own experience and providing follow up one to one support sessions. She is a key volunteer at LinkUp weekend courses. She also helps runs a monthly webinar about audiology visits incorporating her personal experiences.
During Deaf Awareness week this year the webinar was run especially for employees of Barclays Bank. Audiologists in South Bucks heard her Helpful Hour and suggested to Marlow Radio it would make an excellent programme. The resulting programme was a great success, despite radio being a daunting medium for a person with hearing loss. Julia says “My deafness doesn’t define me – but the love and trust of others who are hearing impaired and understand certainly does.”
Roger Walsh started to lose his hearing at the age of 20 due to cancer of the inner ear, and although he recovered from the cancer he became profoundly deaf over the next 15-20 years.
He has worked as a hearing aid aftercare volunteer for Hi Kent since his retirement, going out of his way to help clients look after their aids and offering advice and guidance. He is active on social media and shares posts from Hi Kent to spread awareness. He is also interested in emerging technology and how this can be used to help with deafness.
He has a great interest in local politics, and uses his personal experience and knowledge to promote deaf awareness issues. He is a fantastic volunteer and a key member of Hi Kent’s hearing aid aftercare clinics, always willing to step in and help at short notice.