St John Ambulance Cymru recently hosted the Hospitaller of the Order of St John at its national headquarters to celebrate the enduring humanitarian links between Wales and the Middle East.
Mr David Verity, consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital, spoke to staff and volunteers about the St John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital Group, which has provided care in the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem for over 140 years to all patients, regardless of background or ability to pay.
His visit highlighted the important relationship between the Welsh Priory’s community initiatives and the Order’s global objective to deliver essential eye care services in regions facing significant challenges.
Members of St John Ambulance Cymru’s Eye Hospital Panel presented Mr Verity with a cheque for £30,000, which has been collected via a range of fundraising activities in aid of the Eye Hospital Group, including the annual Christmas Carol Concert held at St John the Baptist City Parish Church in Cardiff, as well as donations made by The Hospitaller’s Club of Wales who were represented at the event by the President Adam Bruce and other committee members.
Mr Verity’s journey with the Order began at age 16 with a formative visit to the eye hospital in Rafah, Gaza. This early exposure to the organisation’s frontline medical work shaped his entire professional trajectory.
“The seed had been sown at an early age,” Mr Verity 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, Mr Verity has served in multiple senior leadership capacities, including as a trustee on the Board of Governors for the Eye Hospital Group. In his current role as Hospitaller, he acts as a bridge between the clinical sites in Jerusalem and Gaza and the global community of supporters.
During his address, Mr Verity praised the Welsh Priory for its distinct contribution to the Order’s 1,000-year history of service. He emphasised that while each national priory provides essential local services, the Eye Hospital Group remains the “international heart” of the organisation’s charitable identity.
“It is one of the oldest organisations that has provided charitable relief, starting in about 1023,” said Mr Verity. “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.”
One of the primary objectives of Mr Verity’s visit was to provide transparency and gratitude to the Welsh supporters whose donations sustain these international medical facilities.
“It’s very difficult for people to go to Jerusalem, and impossible to go to Gaza, to see how their generous donations are used,” Mr Verity noted. “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
