Talking Books stalwart named in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for volunteering

Don Brown, 78 has been awarded a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for his volunteering services to blind and partially sighted people.

Don, who lives in Coventry, became a volunteer for sight loss charity the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in 1977 after seeing an advert for maintaining the charity’s Talking Books machines.

At the time, the machines were huge eight-track tape players, and volunteers like Don were needed to clean and align the tape heads and repair the machines. He was inspired to take up the role, and 45 years later, he remains a dedicated volunteer for RNIB, having also taken on two new roles as a computer volunteer and home technology volunteer.

In addition to his volunteering role, Don has also been the Technology Support Co-ordinator for Coventry and Warwickshire, taking requests from the public and determining the best fit for a volunteer to be assigned to said request.

During lockdown and the coronavirus pandemic, Don was able to continue supporting people with sight loss through remote access facilities, which allowed him to see what was happening on a remote screen, helping him to solve problems immediately rather than have people waiting for a visit.

Speaking about being named in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List, Don said: “I was completely taken aback when I found out the news. It’s a great honour to have been a volunteer for RNIB for so long, and to have this recognised is the cherry on top. It was a fantastic start to the year, and I couldn’t be happier.

“There are so many things I learn from the people I visit, not least patience and resilience. Volunteering is rewarding as I get to develop friendships with grateful people and you get as much out of it as you put in, if not more.”

Gary Brunskill, RNIB’s Specialist Lead for Assistive Technology, said: “Although the devices may have changed over 45 years, technology remains a key enabler for people with sight loss.

“Don’s commitment to supporting hundreds of people over the past 45 years with RNIB is an incredible achievement, and the impact on the lives of the people he supported is something beyond what we can measure.”