Lisa Parke
When Lisa lost her sight due to a condition called Uveitis, she had to give up her job in catering. Instead, she focused on being a mum to her daughter and later joined the Samaritans in 2006 as a listening volunteer, where she worked on the crisis lines. In 2011, Lisa was asked to consider other roles within the Samaritans, but as her writing was no longer legible and she had never used a computer, Lisa felt it was too much of a responsibility. Wanting to take on a new role, Lisa contacted the local authority’s Vision Service, who discussed options such as IT courses and talking computer software. Lisa attended the OCR IT Entry Level 3 course at Dudley College, learning how to type documents, send emails and access the Internet, and she later passed the course. Her newfound skills mean that as well as continuing to be a listening volunteer, she has also been given additional responsibilities within her local Samaritans branch.“Apparently I’m a changed woman with new-found confidence these days,” said Lisa, who continued, “I have Dolphin Guide at home now and I no longer feel left behind. I am useful again!”
