The Martlets Hospice has got such a good reputation in Brighton and Hove – and it is a wonderful place.
Sadly, I lost my wife there back in 2014.
I ended up going to work there full time as a facilities maintenance guy and supervisor and have worked there through the pandemic.
I’ve seen some beautiful sights there – and the staff who work there, it’s their vocation. They’re so dedicated. At the present it is a very tough place to work for them.
With lockdown 1, they bent over backwards to try to do everything to help relatives see their loved ones and to keep staff, volunteers and patients safe.
Again, with lockdown 2, they did the same and they’re performing as well as they can do in these tough times.
Staff are very upbeat, as you’ve got to be in this place.
My friends and relatives – when I first got the job at Martlets – all said to me, how are you going to work there?
Do you know what? I actually enjoy going there. I like to see the people and it’s a nice friendly building.
It is a tough place at this time but you rise above it. You have to. And people pull together.
The wider community are wonderful supporters of the Martlets and have rallied round again to support the hospice this year as all our physical shops have had to shut down during lockdowns.
Martlets has got such a good name and a good following and a lot of dedicated customers.
Fundraising efforts have moved online with “Light up a candle” Christmas events and merchandise like tea towels, Christmas cards and calendars. This helps keep things ticking over which is what we need.
At the Martlets, I see hope in this pandemic, the goodness of people and a sign of Brighton and Hove’s caring community.
Merry Christmas.
To find out how to donate to the Martlets, click here.
To visit the Martlets online shop, click here.
To find out more about fundraising for the Martlets, click here.
Nick Lewry is a Conservative councillor for Hangleton and Knoll ward on Brighton and Hove City Council.
Good work, Nick. As you know, many were there, around the clock, when the great Jack McAngus was dying, a final two weeks of a brain tumour – and I chanced to be there at the very end, during that Saturday morning when he died soon after midday in February 2017. The first time I had seen somebody die. And I am still collecting my thoughts on this. Such a great spirit at the Hospice. I think of it while wearing the jackets from the Blatchington Road-shop! I plan to leave it some of whatever I am worth.