John Kayes normally designs badges for football clubs, but recently came up with the idea of designing a special Showman’s badge for breast cancer charities.
There can be few families who haven’t been touched by cancer and many of us like to donate money to one of the charities that research this disease or help those suffering from it.
So when John Kayes and his sister Liza Noble were chatting about raising money for the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre in Glasgow, which many Showmen have used, John was quick to offer £200 in memory of their late mother, Lila Kayes, who had suffered from breast cancer.
But thinking about it later, John came up with an idea – a way of turning the £200 into £1,000.
John designs and makes badges for football clubs, so he decided to use his skills to design a Showman’s breast cancer pin badge which he could then sell to raise more money for charity.
After playing around with different ideas, he decided on a galloping horse design, with the pink ribbon associated with breast cancer wrapped around the horse.
John then contacted his suppliers and was able to negotiate a £1 price for the pins, so used his £200 to have 200 pins made, which he distributed among family to sell for £5. The pins were all sold out within a week, raising £1,000 for the Beatson and the Royal Marsden Hospital, where John’s late mother was treated.
However, John then started to get requests for the pins – they are a beautiful design that and were clearly very popular. So, he had another 200 made, then another 1600 and, as people see the pins being worn, demand is increasing.
Raising awareness and money
As well as raising money for breast cancer, John hopes that by highlighting the issue through a badge for Showmen, this will help raise awareness. “If it encourages just a few ladies to get checked out, then it has helped”, John said.
The cost of the badge is £1 so £4 goes to the charities involved, usually the Beatson or Royal Marsden but other hospitals where Showpeople have been treated for breast cancer have also benefited.
You can get the pins from Liza Noble, Jacky Kinder, Patrica Kayes, or contact John on 07976 281431 or on Facebook.
