Eastbourne woman appeals for homemade poppies for heartfelt tribute

An Eastbourne woman has urged residents to get in touch to help create a homemade poppy display.

Eileen Digby-Rogers of Vicarage Road said, “I would like to create a poppy cascade to be displayed outside my house over the two-week remembrance period.

“I do not mind what form the poppies take. The few people I have on board at the moment are crocheting.”

Mrs Digby-Rogers said she is appealing for volunteers to help create poppies for the display – which will be linked to a donation page that is raising money for the Royal British Legion.

The Vicarage Road resident, who moved to the town two years ago, said, “Several years ago, before I moved here, Eastbourne Heritage ran an Eastbourne remembers campaign, which you may recall, and vinyls of WWI heroes were placed on pavements around Eastbourne.

“One of them, Archibald Alderman Chase, was placed outside my house and this has prompted me to undertake this project and hopefully raise some funds for our present day heroes.”

Mrs Digby-Rogers said the company who printed these vinyls, Signtek of Southbourne Business Park, has offered to recreate some laminations.

She said, “Basically I need people to make poppies, and lots of them, be it crocheted, knitted or out of plastic bottles. Or maybe they could donate some red wool.”

Mrs Digby-Rogers said there is ‘no pattern’ and the poppies can be ‘as random as anyone wants it to be’.

She added, “We have been on the Old Town site and asked Gildredge School if they would like to get involved.

“It is so important that this generation remembers, and my house is only a few hundred yards from the school, so many children will be able to view it.”

To help please contact [email protected].