Meet our volunteers: Annemarie and Kim
Annemarie and Kim share the role of Local Group Facilitator for ‘Bumpers’ in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The group meets monthly and is open to anyone living with sight loss in the Belfast area. They currently have almost 40 members, supported by an incredible team of sighted volunteers.
Annemarie is a long cane user. She started to lose her sight 10 years ago and lost her job and her driving licence as a result. Kim was diagnosed with RP at the age of 18. She still retains good central vision and plays visually impaired tennis.
Describing the group, Annemarie said “I feel that we’re there for people who want to get out. They decide where they want to go and we try to facilitate that for them. We’ve had some very successful outings, including The Botanic Gardens, Christmas dinner, coffee mornings, walks and this month we are going to Rathlin Island to see the puffins. It’s just lovely to go to places that people wouldn’t normally travel to, or wouldn’t go on their own!”
They have fond memories of their past meetings including a talk at Ulster University, a coast walk and going for lunch and ice cream.
Annemarie describes volunteering as something she gets great pleasure and a sense of achievement from. “You always find out something different about somebody. It’s a lovely thing to do. People have supported me and it’s my turn to give something back!”
Kim previously lived in South Africa. When she arrived in the UK she was excited to see the dynamic work going on at Retina UK and wanted to be a part of it.
She said: “I have met the most extraordinary people with such inner strength and resilience. How amazing other people are – that gives me strength to see life differently. We can’t afford to look inwards and to feel sorry for ourselves on any level. If we don’t live this life we’re going to lose it. I get inspiration from the people I meet. I get inspiration from Annemarie and every other ‘Bumper’ in our group.”
Kim is also part of the ‘Talking’ Tech and ‘Talking’ Travel online groups which are available to everyone. These special interest groups meet bi-monthly on Zoom.
Asked if they would recommend volunteering to others, they both wholeheartedly agree.
“I wish that people would actually volunteer more because it’s so enriching. I think that if people volunteer and give up their time, what you give out, you get back so hugely.”
“It changes people’s lives. Sometimes we are aware of people who are feeling quite down, insular or can’t get past the front gate. It’s so important what we do.”
If you are interested in starting a peer support group in your area or if you would like to volunteer for Retina UK, please get in touch by emailing [email protected] or call us on 01280 821334.