Blind veteran’s grandson to take on marathon

A serving member of the British Army based in Wiltshire, whose grandad is supported by our charity, is set to take on his first marathon in April.

Jack, 26, from Sleaford in Lincolnshire, will be taking on the Newport Marathon on 19 April alongside three of his Army friends, Zach , Kristiaan and Nathan, all of whom serve with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

Jack’s grandad

Terry, who is 80 and lives in Ruskington, started losing his sight around three years ago due to macular degeneration. Jack says:

“Prior to losing his sight grandad was always a very independent man and was strong as an ox but when he first lost his sight, he wasn’t that man anymore.

“Grandad and I used to go fishing together but we can’t do that now. As a family we try to help him out as much as we can but without stepping on him.”

Terry served with the 1st Battalion Royal Green Jackets. He joined as a rifleman in 1965 and during his service he was stationed in Hong Kong, Norway, Northern Ireland, Cyprus, Germany and the Falkland Islands. He served for 22 years and retired in 1987 as a warrant officer class 2.

Our support

Terry has been supported by us since 2024. Jack says:

“I’m really happy that Grandad is looked after by Blind Veterans UK. They also support my grandmother. What the charity does for people like my grandad is phenomenal and I want to do something to enable them to support more veterans like him.”

Terry lost his sight about three years ago. He says: 

“I realised something was wrong with my sight as I was struggling to tie the knots when fly fishing. I visited the optician believing I just needed stronger glasses but was told I had macular degeneration and my sight would deteriorate."

Terry says Blind Veterans UK has changed his life:

“I’ve got purpose again and have been lifted up. I visited the charity’s centre in West Sussex and was given long cane training and have been loaned a reader which magnifies my letters. The charity also helped me to understand what other help I was entitled to and I enjoy going to coffee mornings where I meet other blind veterans and we have a lot of military banter which I’ve missed. Blind Veterans UK has done so much for both me and my wife; it’s unbelievable.”

The marathon

This will be Jack’s first marathon and with less than three months to go he is in full marathon training mode. He says:

“One of the lads running with us has run a marathon before so we are following his lead when it comes to training. The distance is daunting but I know it’s doable. 

“We want to complete the marathon in 3 hours and 40 minutes but the most important thing is that the money we raise will go directly to helping people like my grandad.”

Jack is aiming to raise £1,000 for our charity. You can help him to reach his target by visiting his JustGiving page: