Our President, Vice Presidents and Patrons

Sally Gunnell OBE is a British former track-and-field athlete, who won the 1992 Olympic gold in the 400 metres hurdles. She was a Patron for Chestnut Tree House for 10 years, becoming Vice President of both hospices in 2019. Sally plays an active role for the hospices, having been involved in the annual Snowman Ball and various running and cycling events including the ‘Alinkerlympics’. We are enormously grateful for her support at so many events over the years. She is a true advocate of St Barnabas and Chestnut Tree House Hospices.

Kathy is a long-standing supporter of our hospices. She co-founded Friends of Sussex Hospices in 1995 when she became associated with Martlets Hospice where she volunteered for many years and is now an ambassador. She is currently President of Friends of Sussex Hospices (FSH), a charity run entirely by volunteers that supports the 12 Sussex hospice care providers including St Barnabas and Chestnut Tree Houses. FSH works alongside us to raise funds and promote the vital service we provide to the local communities.

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Tim was first elected to Parliament in 1997 as the Member of Parliament for East Worthing and Shoreham. He has been a Patron of both St Barnabas and Chestnut Tree House for over 15 years and regularly attends fundraising and publicity events.

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Tony Bloom is the majority owner and Chairman of Brighton Hove Albion Football Stadium. In 2023, Tony, a native of Brighton, was honoured in the King’s New Year’s Honours List in recognition of his achievements with BHAFC; his services to football, and to the city of Brighton and Hove where he has made donations for plentiful projects across the local community. Tony and Linda became Patrons in 2013 and support a variety of causes through their charity, The Bloom Foundation. Linda is President and founder of the charity Overcoming MS which promotes key lifestyle changes that help people live well with Multiple Sclerosis.

Matt is the Founder and CEO of Creative Pod, an award-winning full-service marketing agency based in Crawley. He started his fundraising journey for us with the Worthing Birdman, jumping off the pier to raise funds and also organising a car rally abroad. Since 2011, he has been supporting us and became a Patron in 2018. Matt actively promotes supporting Chestnut Tree House through his business which helps provide new corporate support to the hospice. He is a keen supporter of the annual Snowman™ Ball and was one of our major sponsors in 2023.

Barry is retired and was appointed in 1975 to the Royal East Sussex Hospital (RESH) as a Consultant Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeon. When the RESH closed he opened the new Orthopaedic Unit at the Conquest Hospital with The Princess Royal. Jacquie was a Trauma and Orthopaedic Sister and developed the Backcare services for the Trust leading to Specialist Nurse clinics. In recognition of their significant fundraising and support of the hospice, Barry and Jacquie were invited to become Patrons in 2017. They have continued to be active fundraisers for the hospice, including numerous fundraising events at their home.

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Colin retired from his business at LawlerDavis in Eastbourne, where he was a director. He has been a Patron since 2019 and now he is retired he is looking forward to more involvement in Chestnut Tree House. He has previously spoken at events on behalf of Chestnut Tree House pre-pandemic.

Karol became a Patron of Chestnut Tree House in 2024 in recognition of her wonderful support of Chestnut Tree House.

Julia is a children’s author, best known for her popular rhyming stories, and her late husband, Malcolm was a retired consultant paediatrician. The Donaldsons have had a relationship with us for many years and have been Patrons since 2020. Their storytelling sessions at the House have created some magical memories for many children and their families. They performed immersive recreations of The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom, and A Squash and a Squeeze, with children, family members, and staff playing some of the parts. Julia regularly donates signed books to use for fundraising and/or gifts for the families of Chestnut Tree House.

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Jodie is a fashion model and TV personality star who became a Chestnut Tree House Patron in 2018. Jodie helped us launch the Inca Trail challenge in 2018 and signed up to take part in the 2019 trek. Jodie also attends charity events and helps to promote the work of the hospice.

Chesney Hawkes is best known for his single ‘The One and Only’ which topped the UK chart for 5 weeks. He has been a Patron and a fantastic support of ours since 2018, visiting children at the hospice, sending a message of support during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, and helping with a special Christmas Makaton video for all our children, young people, and families to enjoy.

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Becca was one of the first people to receive care and support from Chestnut Tree House when we first opened in 2003. She’s supported us in various ways for several years including sharing her story.

Read Becca’s blog here 

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Peter Andre is a singer and TV personality. Peter has been in the industry with great success since the 90’s. Peter is passionate about helping make a difference for our children. He first visited us in 2018 and became a Patron for us and Together for Short Lives in 2019. During his visits to the hospice, he spends time playing games with the children and talking to families. He also sent a video message to thank our care team for their hard work during the pandemic.