Fr Cyril Axelrod has just been made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth during a special ceremony at Windsor Castle.

Fr Cyril is the first deafblind person to have ever received such an honour and was nominated for his work in establishing deafblind training services with the Hong Kong Society for the Blind, for which he has been an honorary consultant for the past five years. Fr Cyril has also been offering his training services to the Deaf Ministry Team within the Maltese Archdiocese in Malta.

The Queen spoke to Fr Cyril, encouraging him to continue his valuable work around the world helping deafblind and disabled people, and personally thanked him for his gift – a signed copy of his life story And the Journey Begins.

The Diocesan Commission for Persons with Disability and their families, the Deaf Ministry Team within the same Commission as well as Dar tal-Providenza have joined communities and organisations around the world in congratulating Fr Cyril on this special occasion.

The event was followed by a thanksgiving service and celebration at the Sir Christopher Wren Hotel in Windsor in the company of family, friends and select guests from around the world to help share this momentous day – in what was described as a true representation of the global and inclusive appeal of his life and work around the world.

Fr Cyril dedicated and presented his medal to the Hong Kong Society of the Blind representative and good friend of his, Simon Chan, who was recently with him in Malta.

This selfless act is a clear reminder of the humble service Fr Cyril continues to give to the world and is symbolic of his mission to promote what he refers to as the “gift of disabilities”.

Article: DBNews