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News Update - June 2026
We thank God for His ongoing faithfulness in the work of Sight Loss Ministries (SLM). In recent months, we have seen His hand at work in both fellowship and service, expressed through the gifts He has entrusted to His people.
1 Peter 4:10 (NLT)
“God has given gifts to each of you from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Manage them well so that God’s generosity can flow through you.”
This verse reminds us that every gift we have is ultimately received from God. These gifts are diverse, yet they are all given with the same purpose, to serve others. Within SLM, we see this “great variety” of gifts in action every day. It is evident in the volunteer drivers and guides who provide essential support, the worship leaders who lift our spirits, those who offer a listening ear through befriending, and the individuals who give financially to ensure the work can continue and grow.
God calls us to use what He has entrusted to us wisely so that His generosity can flow through us to others. This includes not only our time and abilities but also the resources He provides. When we steward these gifts faithfully, others are served and God is honoured.
A Season of Fellowship and Growth
It has been an incredibly busy and rewarding year so far, with several major events providing wonderful opportunities for our community to gather and grow. Alongside these events, prayer continues to be an important part of ministry life. We meet together twice on Zoom and twice in person each year, giving space to pray for the ministry, support one another, and consider plans for future events. We are grateful for everyone who joins these times, whether online or in person, to seek God’s guidance and give thanks for His provision.
At the end of March, we held a wonderful lunch event at the Banville Hotel in Banbridge. We were privileged to hear from our guest speaker, Yvonne Brown, a former missionary, and our worship was led by Gareth Smyth and Malcolm McLean. These gatherings continue to be a valuable opportunity for fellowship, encouragement, and spiritual refreshment.
Below are photos from our March Lunch Event at the Banville Hotel.
In June, we gathered in Carrickfergus at Ownies Bar & Bistro. Despite the rain, our group enjoyed a lovely walk along the seafront together without getting soaked! It was another special time together, encouraging one another and strengthening friendships within the SLM community.
Below are photos from our June Lunch Event in Carrickfergus.
A significant highlight of our year was the Weekend Away in Buncrana in May. We were delighted to see strong growth this year, with attendance rising from 14 last year to 24, half of whom were blind or partially sighted. We stayed at the Inishowen Gateway Hotel, beautifully situated on the edge of Lough Swilly, providing a peaceful and relaxing setting for our time together.
Our speaker for the weekend was Kevin Vickers, a pastor from South London who is well known and highly regarded within the sight loss community. Kevin shared four encouraging sessions on the theme of Growing in Grace. The teaching helped us reflect on what it means to depend more fully on God’s strength and to grow in our understanding of His grace.
Beyond the sessions, we enjoyed fellowship over meals, a walk through Swan Park, and an insightful visit to the Doagh Famine Village. We are thankful for the friendships strengthened, the encouragement shared, and the opportunity to spend an extended time together as a community.
Below are some photos from our Weekend Away in Buncrana.
Promoting our Services and Strategic Needs
We are deeply thankful that God has allowed us to connect with a number of new blind and partially sighted people throughout this year. Building relationships and creating spaces for fellowship and support remains at the heart of what we do, and it is a joy to see our community expanding.
God has also been providing opportunities for us to share the vision of SLM more widely. So far this year, we have had a number of speaking engagements in churches and groups. These have been instrumental in promoting our services and helping us connect with potential new volunteers to expand our team. While we have been blessed with new helpers, we currently have a strategic need for more volunteers in the Antrim and Armagh areas. Recruitment in these locations would allow us to expand our reach.
We are also making progress on our new SLM website, designed to provide a clearer and more engaging presentation of our work while remaining fully accessible.
Additionally, we were delighted to receive a number of paintings from Irenee Bingham, a friend of SLM, to help raise funds for the charity. We are grateful for this creative and practical support of the ministry. If you would like to know more about these paintings or enquire about purchasing one, please do get in touch with us.
Looking Ahead: Stewardship and Feedback
As we move into the summer months, we are mindful that our financial year finishes on 31st August. This is a busy period of administration as we begin work on the Directors' Report and prepare our accounts for submission to Companies House. As part of this end-of-year review, we are looking for feedback from those who have attended our events. Your input is valuable to us as we plan for 2027 and seek to strengthen and improve our services. Later in the summer, we hope to have feedback questionnaires available, and we would greatly appreciate your thoughts and suggestions.
Our next major gathering is a lunch event on 10th October 2026 at the Dunsilly Hotel, Antrim, where our guest speaker will be Fiona Storer, who has sight loss. Fiona uses knitting to share Bible stories and bring people together. Through her testimony and practical ministry, she encourages others that God can use every gift and every circumstance for His purposes. Before then, we also look forward to our Prayer, Plans and Fellowship meeting in September in Coleraine.
As we prepare for these opportunities and begin planning our schedule for next year, we continue to look to God to provide for our needs. We return again to the heart of 1 Peter 4:10, desiring to manage every gift and resource well so that “God’s generosity can flow through us” to every person we serve.
Prayer Points
Give thanks for the significant growth at our Buncrana weekend and for the impact of the Growing in Grace teaching.
Give thanks for the many ways God’s gifts are at work in SLM, as people use what they have been given in service of others.
Pray for wisdom for the trustees as they prepare the Directors' Report and strategic plans for 2027, including the valuable feedback surveys.
Pray for the recruitment of volunteers specifically in the Antrim and Armagh regions.
Pray for success in our ongoing grant applications to provide a stable foundation for the year ahead.
Pray for the development of the new website, asking that it would be a professional, accessible, and effective tool for reaching more people with sight loss.
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