The story of Simon Brown

We are delighted to announce that blind veteran Simon has been nominated for Soldiering On Through Life Trust's Sunday Express People’s Choice Award.

Blind veteran Simon Brown with his Soldering On award

Nearly 10 years ago, on 6 December 2006, Simon Brown had just successfully led a mission in Iraq to rescue six stranded colleagues when his life changed forever. Simon was shot in the face by a sniper and had to be put into an induced coma, after initially giving himself first aid.

Seventeen days later, then 28-year-old Simon woke up in a Birmingham hospital and was told that his left eye was destroyed and there was little hope for sight in his right eye. For many people, this would be the beginning of the end. But for Simon it was the start of something truly inspiring.

Since his injury, Simon has dedicated himself to working with charitable and voluntary organisations and using his experience to motivate others. This includes him working as our Communications and Engagement Officer.

"Iraq changed me just as much mentally as it did physically, and ten years on the scars are still there. Blind Veterans UK helped me through the very worst times and for that I am very grateful. Spreading the word about the work of the charity as much as I can is my way of saying thank you for everything they have given me."

- Simon

Simon travels independently up and down the country to promote the wide range of support Blind Veterans UK offers blind and vision-impaired veterans. And thanks to his perseverance, good humour and positivity, many ex-Service men and women living with severe sight loss are now receiving life-changing support.

Simon plays a key role in our No One Alone campaign. For nearly five years, the number of new blind veterans joining our charity has increased exponentially. In our last financial year, Simon shared his experiences at 72 external events ranging from national conferences to local support groups, from Glasgow to Jersey. During this year, a record number of 875 blind veterans came forward to receive support from us for the first time. He has directly contributed to this result.

"Simon truly is a man who has soldiered on despite great adversity. He is someone who everyone at Blind Veterans UK admires and enjoys working with. We all feel privileged that he now stands next to us as one of our colleagues and does such incredible work reaching out to the veterans we do or could support. He would be a worthy winner of Soldiering On's People Choice award."

- Lara King, Group Manager, No One Alone campaign

The story of Simon Brown

You can read more on Simon's story here, or watch his video below.

To watch more videos about Simon click here.

Read more about blind veteran Simon.