Miss-Delectable
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2004
- Messages
- 17,160
- Reaction score
- 7
http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/features/Being-deaf-and-blind-can39t.3222300.jp
Ahead of a unique fund-raising event, the Vision 5k UK, which aims to raise funds for deafblind charity Sense, features writer Hannah Gray finds out about one young man who manages to overcome huge obstacles to lead a packed and varied life.
BEING deafblind has not stood in the way of Richard Brumby leading the kind of active lifestyle which would put most fully-sighted people to shame.
Richard (22) has studied art at a college for people with visual impairments, he has abseiled, been horse riding and even tried the new extreme sport Airkix, a sky diving simulator.
Two years ago he went sailing on the Solent in a specially adapted boat.
Soon he will start an art course at Peterborough Regional College, and at the end of September, with the help of a guide, he will take part in a special 5km walk, the Vision 5k UK, which will raise money for the charity Sense, which runs the shared home in Paston, Peterborough, where Richard lives.
Richard will be providing some stiff competition for the other participants, as he already walks for an hour each night.
Manager of the house where Richard lives Michelle O'Reilly, said: "I think he'll be brilliant. I have every confidence in him.
"I think he'll be excited about the number of people there, and he will enjoy just setting out and being part of it.
"From my point of view, I think it will be great to show people he's deafblind and he can still do it."
Richard's active and mobile lifestyle is remarkable given the challenges he has faced in his life so far.
He was born three months prematurely and spent the first five months of his life in hospital.
When he was 17 months old, he was diagnosed as being profoundly deaf.
He spent the first 14 years of his life able to see, until his vision began to deteriorate and he was diagnosed with a condition called retinopathy of prematurity, when children are born before the blood supply to the retina has a chance to develop.
Despite undergoing seven operations to try and save his sight, Richard now only has what is know as light perception – he can see lights against darkness.
He can hear environmental noise, for example that people are talking but not what is being said.
When he was aged 13 he was also diagnosed as having Asperger's Syndrome (a form of autism).
Despite all of these difficulties, Richard has an incredible knack for communication.
He mastered British Sign Language before he lost his sight, and still uses this to communicate with other people who can understand it.
He can also read Braille.
Other people are able to communicate with him through deafblind manual, a type of finger spelling which is done on his hand, as well as hands-on sign language, when he places his hands over the signer's.
Richard's mum Mary told the ET: "He's always been brilliant at being able to adjust his mode to whoever he's trying to communicate with."
As well as raising funds for Sense, the Vision 5k UK at Burghley House in Stamford also aims to raise awareness of deafblindness, and entrants who are not visually impaired can show solidarity by wearing a blindfold and running with a guide.
It will take place on Sunday, September 30.
For more information, visit www.senseevents.co.uk, e-mail events@sense.org.uk or call 0845 127 0065.
Ahead of a unique fund-raising event, the Vision 5k UK, which aims to raise funds for deafblind charity Sense, features writer Hannah Gray finds out about one young man who manages to overcome huge obstacles to lead a packed and varied life.
BEING deafblind has not stood in the way of Richard Brumby leading the kind of active lifestyle which would put most fully-sighted people to shame.
Richard (22) has studied art at a college for people with visual impairments, he has abseiled, been horse riding and even tried the new extreme sport Airkix, a sky diving simulator.
Two years ago he went sailing on the Solent in a specially adapted boat.
Soon he will start an art course at Peterborough Regional College, and at the end of September, with the help of a guide, he will take part in a special 5km walk, the Vision 5k UK, which will raise money for the charity Sense, which runs the shared home in Paston, Peterborough, where Richard lives.
Richard will be providing some stiff competition for the other participants, as he already walks for an hour each night.
Manager of the house where Richard lives Michelle O'Reilly, said: "I think he'll be brilliant. I have every confidence in him.
"I think he'll be excited about the number of people there, and he will enjoy just setting out and being part of it.
"From my point of view, I think it will be great to show people he's deafblind and he can still do it."
Richard's active and mobile lifestyle is remarkable given the challenges he has faced in his life so far.
He was born three months prematurely and spent the first five months of his life in hospital.
When he was 17 months old, he was diagnosed as being profoundly deaf.
He spent the first 14 years of his life able to see, until his vision began to deteriorate and he was diagnosed with a condition called retinopathy of prematurity, when children are born before the blood supply to the retina has a chance to develop.
Despite undergoing seven operations to try and save his sight, Richard now only has what is know as light perception – he can see lights against darkness.
He can hear environmental noise, for example that people are talking but not what is being said.
When he was aged 13 he was also diagnosed as having Asperger's Syndrome (a form of autism).
Despite all of these difficulties, Richard has an incredible knack for communication.
He mastered British Sign Language before he lost his sight, and still uses this to communicate with other people who can understand it.
He can also read Braille.
Other people are able to communicate with him through deafblind manual, a type of finger spelling which is done on his hand, as well as hands-on sign language, when he places his hands over the signer's.
Richard's mum Mary told the ET: "He's always been brilliant at being able to adjust his mode to whoever he's trying to communicate with."
As well as raising funds for Sense, the Vision 5k UK at Burghley House in Stamford also aims to raise awareness of deafblindness, and entrants who are not visually impaired can show solidarity by wearing a blindfold and running with a guide.
It will take place on Sunday, September 30.
For more information, visit www.senseevents.co.uk, e-mail events@sense.org.uk or call 0845 127 0065.
