Lee Curry
Lee is profoundly deaf and British Sign Language is his first language. He was six months old when he became deaf, after contracting meningitis and septicaemia – which also led to the loss of the ends of his fingers and toes.
He went to a specialist school, left with five GCSEs and – after a few years of unemployment – he got a job with Gateshead Council, through his involvement with a local Deaf Youth Club.
When the funding for his job came to an end after a year, as his nominator, Francis Murphy, explains, “Lee decided to better himself and to gain skills at something he always enjoyed doing… using his hands around the house and being productive”.
He was nervous about going back into education, but enrolled onto a Level 1 Decorator and Painter course at Newcastle College in September 2007 – passing that and a Level 1 English exam, meaning he now has a second language.
Lee has progressed on to Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications and, during last summer, he volunteered to paint and decorate 43 rooms at a residential and support project for homeless young people – which he completed in 15 weeks.
Not allowing his disabilities to hold him back, he is Rutherford AFC’s regular goalkeeper and – despite not having the full use of his hands and feet – he has exceeded what is normally expected with the various tasks involved in his course. Lee has recently got his own flat and is busy working as a decorator.