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Why I think some blind people need a good kick up the backside
By Tommy Hughes Belfast Telegraph, March 25, 2005

Tommy Hughes (41) is registered blind. But the dad-of-one has just left behind the security of a steady job to start up a company aimed at helping other blind people become better integrated into society. The Glengormley man tells Karen Ireland why he decided to take such a huge leap of faith.

25 March 2005 Some blind people need a good kick up the backside. They expect to be lifted and laid through life. That's nothing to do with their disability - it's just the way some people are in life, whether they happen to be blind or not.

Life is all about attitude. Some people are do-ers and givers. But some people are not; they just take.

Thankfully, I have always been a do-er.

Since birth, I've only been able to see just a little. My vision is very limited.

But I've always tried to get on with things and make the best of them.

Today, I'm married, I have a child and I lead a normal happy life.

I've always tried to stay positive and I've never let my disability hold me back.

And now, through my new business venture, I'm determined to encourage other blind people, too.

Initially, I went to a mainstream primary school but I'd trouble seeing the blackboard. Eventually I was sent for tests and diagnosed with limited sight, which meant I was registered blind. Consequently, I was sent to a special school in Jordanstown.

Still, I'm proud that since leaving school I have always worked. Initially, I'd a job as a store manager for BHS but that ended after 14 years when I was made redundant.

That was a blow, though looking back, it proved to be the catalyst that turned my life around.

I went on to take a Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) training course called Sightline to Work. That involved someone coming to my house and training me in IT and software.

Through that course I was offered a job with the RNIB. Ironically, I was the first registered blind person they had working with them full-time.

In addition to the computer work I also transcribed literature to audio and braille, the code that helps blind people to read.

I loved the job; it felt like I was giving something back to the blind community. Plus, I met lots of interesting people.

Yet, as time went on, I felt I wanted to do even more - and that's when the idea for starting up my own business came about.

I knew I had the skills and the ability to help blind and visually impaired people across a whole range of ways.

So, last month, I left the security of my nine-to-five job to go it alone.

It was a tough decision but with the support of friends and family, particularly my wife Breda, I decided to just go for it.

As I'm 41, I felt it was a case of now or never.

My company, Visual Access NI, works on different levels.

I offer a transcribing service for companies and corporations, computer and software training for people with sight loss, as well as training in visual awareness.

Through this I am trying to help blind people become more integrated into society.

Incredibly, some people still have a fear of the blind. They are nervous around them and are not quite sure how to approach them or what to say to them.

Often, all they do is grab them by the arm and trail them across the road.

I want to get out there into the workplace and educate employers on how to train their staff to meet and greet blind and visually impaired people.

I also plan to give talks and seminars in schools and colleges to help educate young people. And I'd like to get more involved with charities and groups for the blind.

Blind people are not stupid.

I have simulator glasses which demonstrate to full-sighted people what it would feel like to be visually impaired.

Certainly, some of my approach to life must stem from my upbringing. I grew up with two brothers and they didn't wrap me in kid gloves or treat me differently. I had to fend for myself and that makes you tougher.

Yes, occasionally I got teased and bullied as a child but I learnt to stand up for myself and not let those knocks keep me down.

In fact, once during a sight test, my optician told me I was very lucky. I asked him how that could be when I had very limited vision? He replied that if I had gone from full vision to what I have now it would have been a disaster for me, whereas I've never known any different so I have my own ways of coping with this.

And that's what I concentrate on now, rather than dwelling on the fact that I can't see.

I have a three-year-old son, Thomas, and I did worry before he was born whether his sight would be okay.

I knew that if his sight was impaired he would be alright but, at the same time, I didn't want him to be teased or made feel different.

As it happened, he has full sight. He's great - and a real handful!

But the truth is that my lack of sight hasn't really hindered me in life.

The only thing I wish was different is that I would love to be able to drive.

But that's not going to happen so what's the point in brooding about it?

Besides, Breda helps me out by driving me around - which is brilliant. I couldn't do this without her help and support.

We've been married for seven years now and we're just like any other ordinary couple. Like most men, I'm not great at remembering dates. Mind you, I never forget the first time we met. It was in a bar and we hit it off straightaway.

Right now, my priority is very much on my new business.

I am very excited about it and I'm convinced it will pay off - not just for me but for others. This is my way of giving back what I can.

Tommy can be contacted on 028 9059 9421 or by email: enquiries@visualaccessni.co.uk or at: www.visualaccessni.co.uk http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/features/story.jsp?story=623557