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Blind veteran to march with teenage great-grandson

Blind Veterans UK A teenage boy wearing a suit, RAF cap and poppy, stands next to his great-grandmother, who is also wearing an RAF cap, large red poppy, blue coat and blue scarf.Blind Veterans UK
Janet Hazlewood will be escorted by her 14-year-old great-grandson Dillon

An 87-year-old RAF veteran who lost her sight 10 years ago will march at the Cenotaph on Sunday with her teenage great-grandson by her side.

Janet Hazlewood, from York, will walk with cadet Dillon, 14, as part of the Remembrance Sunday commemorations in London.

Mrs Hazlewood will join more than 40 veterans who are supported by Blind Veterans UK, the national charity for visually impaired ex-service personnel.

Mrs Hazlewood first joined the Women’s Royal Air Force in 1955.

She served for two-and-a-half years as a photographer, taking pictures for the identity cards carried by service personnel.

She was discharged as a senior aircraftwoman when she married her husband, who himself served in the RAF for 29 years.

Mrs Hazlewood said: "About eight years ago, my vision had declined to the extent that I decided to stop driving, which is what I miss the most.

"My mother also had macular degeneration and lost her sight suddenly, so I am very aware of what might happen.

"That’s why I do all I can to maintain my eye health and the small amount of vision I have left."

Getty Images King Charles III lays a wreath at the Cenotaph in London during the 2023 Remembrance Sunday commemorations.Getty Images
Remembrance Sunday commemorations will take place across the UK

Mrs Hazlewood said Blind Veterans UK had "done so much" to support her since losing her eyesight, including donating her a magnifier for reading letters and talking scales to help her cook.

She added: “I am hugely looking forward to marching alongside my fellow blind veterans this Remembrance.

"I’m 87 now so I'm not sure how many more times I’ll be able to be there.

"I know that the energy from the crowds will give me a massive lift again.”

Adrian Bell, chief executive of Blind Veterans UK, said part of remembrance was about acknowledging "the significant challenges faced by veterans living with life-altering injuries from their service".

He said: "This year marks important anniversaries for our veterans, not least the 80th anniversaries of key battles that turned the tide of the Second World War and 25 years since Kosovo.

"With these in mind, we will be particularly thinking of all those tragically lost and wounded in these conflicts, and of their families."

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