'I've been making cards since 2003 and never put the price up'

Jill Hiatt, 86, has been selling her homemade cards since 2003

A North Yorkshire woman has raised more than £30,000 for charity by selling handmade cards.

Jill Hiatt, 86, started her project in 2003, when her daughter Julie asked her to craft some cards for her.

Julie insisted on paying for them, so Jill decided to donate the £6 to her local chapel in Kirkbymoorside, which was raising funds for WaterAid.

Since then, Jill has made thousands of birthday and Christmas cards for charity and is known as "the WaterAid lady" in nearby villages.

"I sell them for a pound, it's never gone up," Jill said.

"Also people have been good, donating extra money or just sending me donations.

"I really don't know how many cards I've made, I've never counted."

Jill makes cards for every occasion and begins making Christmas cards in January

The 86-year-old cardmaker holds coffee mornings at her home to sell the cards, as well as taking them to churches and craft fairs.

During the pandemic, people would ask Jill to put cards on the doorstep and they would post money through the door.

The community in Kirkbymoorside and Appleton-le-Moors also helps by donating old cards for Jill to reuse and craft into something new.

Selling about 300 Christmas cards each year, Jill starts her preparation early.

"I start making them in January!" she laughed.

Jill's donations have helped to deliver clean water to communities all over the world.

She hopes to have raised £31,000 by the end of the year.

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