Summary
Martlets supporter, Sindy, has been knitting and donating colourful jumpers to our shops for the past six years. We wanted to say a special thank you and celebrate her woolly wonderful knits.
As winter approaches, it’s time to get cosy in one of Sindy’s brand new sweaters – our Church Street store has just taken delivery of new stock!
“Sindy’s jumpers are like a big warm hug – symbols of the warmth and care Martlets provides to patients and families across the city,” says Louise Etheridge, shop manager at our Church Street store in Brighton. The jumpers sell at £17 each and previously we’ve had around 50 donations from her every year. Unfortunately, Sindy hasn’t been too well this past year, but she’s still found the time and energy to knit us some wonderful jumpers to sell. It’s so lovely to have the pop of colour in the shop and we are truly grateful for her kindness in donating them – they bring a lot of joy and she pays for all the wool herself. Over the past six years we must’ve raised more than £3,000 from selling them. We’d like to send Sindy a big thank and lots of love.”
Sindy’s colourful jumpers on display in our Church Street shop.
Knitting in memory
Martlets looked after a good friend of Sindy’s who sadly died around 15 years ago.
“I know all about the hospice and the care Martlets provides to people in the community,” Sindy explains. “I wanted to support them by donating the jumpers. I’ve always knitted; I’m 78 now and my mother taught me when I was just three years old because I wanted to make doll’s clothes. I buy wool in all sorts of bright colours and knit adult jumpers in different sizes. I don’t use patterns; I’ve knitted enough that I can make up the pattern myself now. The only colour I don’t knit with is black because it’s very difficult to knit with in electric light.
I had a stroke a while ago and afterwards I couldn’t walk or talk; my husband had to feed me and I couldn’t do anything. But I was determined to get my hands going and to be able to knit again. I’m in a wheelchair, I have a cleaner, and my husband does all the cooking, and I sit and knit all day. He’s got enough jumpers to last him if he were to live to 200! I thought what can I do with all these jumpers I’m knitting and then I thought of donating them to Martlets. Their shop in Church Street is the cleanest, nicest charity shop I’ve ever seen! So, I decided I’d donate them there. I take my jumpers into the shop in October/November time, for them to sell to raise money.
The first year I did it I got an email from Martlets saying sales of the jumpers had raised more than £800. But I don’t ask them about the money now, I just love doing the knitting. I’ll pop the TV on, chat to my husband, or even read a book while I’m doing it and the jumpers keep me going.”
The five-star reviews are in!
Customers in our Church Street shop are always commenting on Sindy’s jumpers, says shop manager Louise. Here are just some of their comments:
‘I shall treasure this jumper and bring it out every winter.’
‘How wonderful to have a hand knitted jumper.’
‘What an amazing woman to knit all these.’
‘Such beautiful colours and so beautifully made.’
‘These are just like the ones my Nan used to knit and it’s brought back such lovely memories.’
A big, warm, thank you to Sindy from everyone at Martlets. If you’d like to buy one of Sindy’s jumpers to snuggle up in this autumn, pop down to our Church Street shop before they sell out again!
Find out more
- Contact the Church Street store to check if Sindy’s jumpers are still in stock.
- If, like Sindy, you’re remembering a loved one this winter, we invite you to include their name in a beautiful display of in-memory dedications at Martlets. All names received will form a display on the windows of our Sanctuary space during the festive season, and you are welcome to visit any time. To make a dedication, please visit martlets.memorypage.org/heartfeltmemories or call us on 01903 323555 by Friday 5 December.
- Thinking of volunteering for Martlets? From knitting jumpers to sell in our shops to sorting donations and looking after our hospice gardens, we’ll help you find a volunteer role that suits you. View our current volunteering opportunities and join #Team Martlets!
Updated 30/10/25