Who WE ARe
We are a group of people passionate about donkeys and other animals, many of us belong to the Northern Region of the Donkey Breed Society, some of us are crafters and creatives. When gifted over 1000 beautifully crafted, purple crocheted poppies, symbolising the roles that animals have played in conflicts past and in more recent times, intricately secured onto camouflage netting, we knew that we must share them, they needed to be seen; each one is unique.
Given the strong link to the military, a ‘Tour’ seemed like a very good idea. Taking the Poppies across the Northern Region of the Donkey Breed Society, as the role of the donkey in war also needed flagging up, made sense and where better to ask for them to visit than Army Museums that already had their own links to the roles of animals within their collections.
Interest in the Poppies’ Tour was infectious from the start. Once the word was out and people connected with the swell of worthy sentiment behind its mission – ergo to commemorate all animals that have served in conflicts - we were inundated with requests for further information. Who had made them? How many were there? Serious crafters asked for patterns and details of materials used. We were right, people wanted to see them!
We found ourselves creating a travelling display, one that would allow people to stop and contemplate the roles that animals and birds had indeed played in war. One that would also realise the importance of crafting/making as an avenue for expressions of remembrance. One that would allow us to encourage people of all ages and life experiences to become involved in future acts of commemoration, such as International War Animal Day, on the 24th February, with their own purple poppies.
Among the Society’s membership of donkey lovers, there are crafters, artists, teachers, vets, medics, historians, writers and many more individuals with wonderful talents and they have come together to contribute their knowledge to the display. We visit schools, we offer craft workshops in the museums that we visit and each exhibition is accompanied by at least one ‘Donkeys at the Museum Day’ where the public can meet local donkeys and find out about the roles of these gorgeous animals and others that served in wars past and in more recent times.
Explore our website and find out more about The Tour. Any questions?
Meet the Team
Sarah Booth
Sarah lives in Cheshire, UK. It was Sarah who received the original call from Christine in Richmond, North Yorkshire, offering her the huge quantity of poppies and Sarah’s ex-military husband who suggested they take them on Tour!
Sarah mixes her past two careers of PR and Teaching to find ways of promoting the Tour and all it stands for, bringing innovative education programmes to schools and community groups associated with the Museums visited by The Tour and pursuing an important quest: that all the animals that have served alongside our brave armed forces are not forgotten.
A member of The Donkey Breed Society, Sarah says it made ‘perfect sense to bring in the Society’s Northern Region, with its deep love of animals, hard graft ethic and great enthusiasm for crafting to form a crucial, core part of the Team’.
Sarah is also lead for the link between The Tour and the Australian War AnimalMemorial Organisation, Aus., and The War Horse Memorial Organisation, UK.
Contact: northerndonks@gmail.com
Sarah Pennell
Sarah lives in Derbyshire, UK and is our chief crafter and maker. Sarah has run many workshops for people, sharing her wonderful skills across a range of projects from appliqué to felting, from glasswork to wickerwork and much more besides.
Sarah’s patience is amazing. This spring she took all the poppies off the camouflage netting to wash them before painstakingly reattaching them and then providing them with a new backing. It is this attention to detail and preservation that is much valued, adding longevity to our wonderful cascade.
The wonderful Quilt/Wall-hanging was put together by Sarah, a real labour of love and respect for all animals. The trim and surround are stunning and show off the contributions of makers from the UK and abroad quite beautifully.
We are truly fortunate to have such a skilled crafter in our midst!
Olwen Brown
Olwen lives in the High Peak with her many donkeys, ponies and horses. She is a craftswoman par excellence, and her skills have enhanced our Museum Exhibitions and Pop-Up displays.
Olwen’s knitted troop of soldiers and donkeys, including the infamous Simpson and his donkey, in Gallipoli, is incredible and much admired by all who encounter them. Olwen has even been asked to knit soldiers for some of the Museums that we have encountered on our Tours, to leave behind for their own displays.
Olwen says that she feels, ‘at a loss if I am not knitting in the evenings’! Making other items for sale, such as little felt donkeys, aprons and cushion covers also keeps Olwen busy and she has raised hundreds of pounds for charities such as the Donkey Breed Society Northern Region’s ‘Donkey on the Somme’ appeal and for mother and baby charities in her local area.
Christine Sellers
Christine lives in Richmond, North Yorkshire. Along with her friends and original Richmond Purple Poppy ladies: Valerie (dec. 2025), Lynn and Vera, Christine has supported many of the ‘donkeys at the Museum’ days or crafting events that we have held. The ladies were there at the very first Museum Exhibition in York, 2024. A proud day indeed.
The Poppies’ Tour is now in its third year and has touched the lives of many people and this is down to Christine, Valerie, Lynn and Vera, for rescuing them and making the call that would put them on a national stage! We are so grateful to them for wanting the renewed and refreshed cascade to keep on travelling across the UK and for supporting its evolution.
Tracey Calcutt
Tracey is the driving force behind our social media content – she knows how to do it and has lots of contacts! Tracey helped out at the first ‘Donkeys at the Museum’ day at The Museum of The Queen’s Royal Hussars in Warwick and ended up being a much-valued, regular volunteer there too!
​Giving total commitment and support to The Tour, coming up with plentiful, innovative suggestions about directions that it might take, and with an avid interest in the roles that animals, particularly equines, played in war, Tracey’s knowledge is a considerable asset when we are preparing new projects and elements of our display.
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Tracey also introduced us to our website producer, we are extremely grateful!
Luke Calcutt
Luke is the creator of this website, having taken on this role shortly after finishing his last assignment for his University degree. We know that you will agree that he has done a tremendous job - thank you Luke!
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Contact: lukecalcuttmedia@gmail.com
And to all the amazing Curators and Archivists that we have had the good fortune to meet during our journey so far – thank you, we have learned so much from you and continue to do so. Your work is truly amazing.