St John Ambulance Cymru support Save Sight in Middle East

Adam Johannes

St John Ambulance Cymru has donated £30,000 to a charity that has been providing life-changing eye care in the Middle East for more than 140 years.

The cheque was presented to David Verity, Hospitaller of the Order of St John, during a special event at St John Ambulance Cymru’s national headquarters in Cardiff.

Verity, a renowned consultant ophthalmologist at London’s Moorfields Eye Hospital, praised the support from Welsh donors and volunteers, highlighting the crucial work being done in Jerusalem, Gaza, and the West Bank.

“It is one of the oldest organisations that has provided charitable relief, starting in about 1023,” Verity said. “That message of service is a very powerful one. It’s an Order that delivers a lot, and it delivers in a difficult part of the world.”

The funds were raised through a variety of activities, including the annual Christmas Carol Concert at St John the Baptist City Parish Church in Cardiff and donations from The Hospitaller’s Club of Wales. Adam Bruce, President of the club, was among those at the event.

Paul Griffiths OBE, St John Prior for Wales and Chair of the Board of Trustees at St John Ambulance Cymru, said: “It was a pleasure to welcome Mr Verity to Cardiff and hear about the positive impact the Eye Hospital Group is making in extremely difficult circumstances. We were delighted to be able to present him with a cheque towards continuing this vital work.”

Order

The Order of St John itself has a remarkable history. It traces its roots to the Knights Hospitaller of the Middle Ages, the oldest surviving chivalric order, founded in Jerusalem in 1099 and later known as the Order of Malta. A faction emerged in France in the 1820s before moving to Britain in the early 1830s.

After operating under a series of leaders and names, it became closely linked with the founding of two health organisations, the St John Eye Hospital, opened in 1882 near Jerusalem’s Old City, and St John Ambulance, launched five years later in 1887.

Verity’s involvement with the Order began at age 16 with a visit to the eye hospital in Rafah, Gaza, which he says inspired his career path. “The seed had been sown at an early age,” he explained. “After qualifying as an eye doctor, I felt I had more to offer the organisation and started to go back much more regularly.”

Since 2005, he has served in senior leadership roles, including trustee on the Board of Governors for the Eye Hospital Group. As Hospitaller, he acts as a bridge between the clinical sites in Jerusalem and Gaza, and international supporters, often updating donors on how their contributions are used.

“It’s very difficult for people to go to Jerusalem, and impossible to go to Gaza, to see how their generous donations are used,” Verity said. “One of my roles is to come back and describe how the site is sustained, and not least to thank them on behalf of the patients they’ll never meet.”

To find out more about the St John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital Group and support its work visit: www.stjohneyehospital.org. 

To get involved with St John Ambulance Cymru, visit www.sjacymru.org.uk.