Percy Harrold has been honored at the sixty-second General Conference (GC) Session in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, for more than three decades of dedicated service to blind and visually impaired people around the world.
The award recognizes Harrold’s faithful and unwavering commitment to making the English Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide accessible through audio recordings. He has recorded and produced about 12,000 daily lessons, which are broadcast globally via the GC Sabbath School app and other platforms, such as SoundCloud, iTunes, and YouTube.
The presentation was made during the Sabbath School program on July 12 by Douglas Venn, associate director of GC Sabbath School and Personal Ministries for Adventist Possibility Ministries, and Wayne Boehm, director of Hope Channel South Pacific.
“Did you know, Dr. Harrold, that during the past 60 days 2.5 million people have actually accessed the audio version? And we have 500,000 active users each week on the app,” Venn said.
“Based on those statistics, that puts this resource within the top 1 percent of podcasts globally,” Boehm added.
Harrold was thanked for his faithful service and dedication.
“You never sought attention, but your voice has been a lifeline for thousands who would otherwise not engage in the Sabbath School lesson,” Venn said. “It’s a powerful reminder of what one person can do.”
Harrold’s recordings began with cassette tapes distributed to blind and low-vision church members in the South Pacific Division. Over time, the recordings transitioned to CDs and digital formats, with the first podcast launched on July 1, 2007. Today his work is distributed globally across multiple platforms, with more than 1 million downloads a year.
Now 84, Harrold remains actively involved in producing the weekly podcast, recording from the study of his home in Yandina, Queensland, using a laptop and microphone. Each lesson takes about three days to complete, including recording, editing, and formatting. He is supported by his wife, Marion, and their family.
“What I do is voluntary, but it’s something I want to do,” he said. “There is a need for blind individuals to hear, to see—and that applies to Scripture as well. No one else is recording these Sabbath School lessons anywhere in the world.”
Thousands tune in each week, and listener feedback confirms the podcast’s spiritual value and global reach. Comments come from all walks of life—some ask for prayer; others simply wish Harrold well and express gratitude for the podcast. “At least one baptism, but joy for so many,” he said.
Despite recent health challenges that briefly disrupted his schedule—the first missed release in more than 1,200 podcast episodes—Harrold is now back behind the mic, already recording lessons for the upcoming quarter.
On receiving news of the GC recognition, he was deeply moved. “I feel very honored to be part of a team that supports appropriate resources for those who are blind and who are deaf across the world,” he said. “I see this award as a way of publicizing our Possibility Ministries services to the Church. Each of us could one day need these services. I am proud of the team, but humbled and pleased that I have been honoured.”
The original version of this story was posted on Adventist Record website.
