New Country Count

Hi folks, Rich the website manager here. You may have noticed the number of countries where ducks have been found had changed from 107 to 96 on the world map page.

I just thought I’d explain why this has happened. Previously we used a loose definition of what a country was and added them in kind of adhoc. For instance the channel islands and Isle of Man were counted as separate countries. We have now moved to a standard definition of “Sovereign States” which means that some places we previously classed as a country are subsumed into another. Hence the total number of “countries” has gone down.

Hope that makes sense. Any questions please use our contact form.

Ducks still making smiles and saving lives around the world.

We received a lovely email from Andrea in Alice Springs, Australia this week. Her friends baby has Leukaemia and is to have a stem cell transplant this week. I’m sure we all wish him well.

Andrea is involved in Bone Marrow campaigning and fund raising for some time and is about to do a cycling challenge. She will leave the duck, Stuart, on the cycling route.

I am not sure if I will be allowed out of the house after Friday due to the fire break lockdown here in Wales. I shall put my hallowe’en ducks out a week early. I hope they are all found and enjoyed.

I hope you are all keeping well and staying safe. I wonder what next year will bring.

Spreading the word and saving lives

11,734 ducks have now been logged onto our world map in 104 of the world’s 198 countries. This month, September, 2019, a lovely duck called Neptune twenty paid a visit to the tiny St Agnes Primary School on the Isles of Scilly. Neptune is being loved and well looked after by the school’s six pupils.

Harleigh found Brazil Nut Duck on a park bench in Barnstaple High Street, Devon and commented on the coincidence of finding him at this time. Harleigh says “So thankful. Ducks are my favoirite and my work team are all going to give blood next month. Such an amaing cause and so strange that we have this planned”. I hope Brazil Nut becomes Harleigh’s lucky duck.

This month also, one of our prolific duck makers, Sue (I think from North Yorkshire) left a whole extended family of ducks, 21 logged so far, at the Staithes Arts and Heritage Festival. Well done Sue on spreading the word about life saving organ donation.

Shadia found Sunnie duck at Rochester Cathedral near the Statue of the Knife Angel. I’d not heard of this statue so I googled it (as you do). The Knife Angel is recognised as the National Monument against violence and aggression and is made from 100,000 weapons surrendered and confiscated in 2016. After it leaves Rochester at the end of September it will be shown at Derby.

First West Bradford Guides saving lives

The amazing young ladies of the First West Bradford Guides have taken the Little Yellow Duck Project to heart and made 50 ducks which have been Distributed at the Waddington Duck Race and Scarecrow Festival. Half of these ducks have been logged, that is a lot of smiles made. Well done girls and thank you.

There are many more pics on the Waddy Duck facebook page.

Other ducks found this week was Gustav, found by Bailey in Malone, New York, USA. Bailey says a two yea old girl found this. Her Papa has just had a bone marrow transplant so the duck really means a lot to the family.

Quentin Duck was found and taken home by Effie at the Littlesea Haven Holiday Camp in Weymouth, Dorset, UK.

Effie was so pleased to find this duck on holiday! “We are so
pleased as effie’s arrival meant her mom needed a life saving blood
transfusion. Thank you again to all the blood, bone marrow and organ donors!”

Saving lives and making smiles.

The Little Yellow Duck Project is becoming one of the most important life saving projects in the world. We have duckulated more than half the world now with 10,539 ducks being logged. As our members are aware, that means more than 40,000 ducks have been left to make people smile and to save, improve and extend the lives of some wonderful, grateful strangers.

Today the map was updated with 15 more ducks including one that was left at The Ultrasound waiting room at Countess of Chester Hospital, Chester in Greater Manchester, UK. The comment from Carolyn, the finder of Hope63 was heart warming.

“My husband lost his Dad just 2 days ago and this little act of
kindness gave us a smile, we saw it as a sign that he’s OK up there in
heaven. Thank you Hen 63, we’ll treasure this little duck forever xx”

We also had an email from Jennifer Barlow, the post transplant sister at Royal Preston Hospital. The Little Yellow Duck Project has been chosen to be highlighted for World Kidney Day, March 14. There will be a fun run and all the runners, 80 last year, will be given our little ducks to distribute on the route through the lovely town of Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire.

Some of our wonderful duck makers have pledged to send ducks to Jennifer. We have such an amazing family of duck makers committed to the cause.

I am looking forward to seeing photographs of the day.

Great month for ducks

Our lovely Emma, CF Warrior Princess, is still fighting her corner and sends everyone her thanks for keeping the Little Yellow Duck Project going.

“I had my transplant at the end of April but have suffered a mixture of complications since so am still fighting to get on top of things. Thank you all so much for all you are doing and continue to do. I so want to be well enough to get back into the project”.

I am sure I speak for everyone when I say Emma has inspired all of us to become so excited by the Project which she began.  As she fights on bravely towards good health, she continues to be an inspiration.

Sending lots of love and hugs to you Emma, and to  wonderful Brad and the Amazing Teddy.

November has been a really good month with Remembrance Days not only saving lives but remembering those who gave their tomorrows for our todays.

We reached 10,000 ducks on the map in the last few weeks and also logged our 100th country.  Our ducks have been found in many exciting and interesting places.  I wish I could go to some of these wonderful places.

You won’t need reminding that Christmas, Fiesta, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Omisoka, Yule or whatever you celebrate in December, is coming upon us fast.  Some photographs have already been logged onto our Facebook page showing ducks on community Christmas trees.  Wouldn’t it be lovely to see some ducks celebrating all sorts of ceremonies.

December is all set to be an excellent duck-month.

 

Jet setting ducks.

This week’s logged ducks have travelled widely over the  Northern Hemisphere.  Lucky ducks, I would love to go to some of these places.

One jet setting duck, El Pablo was received by Kiandra in Florence, Italy and taken of Cinque Terre on the Amalfi Coast on the Italian Riviera.  How amazing does that sound? Kiandra and El Pablo then hiked from Portovenere to Levano.  A wonderful trip.

Kiandra plans of passing El Pablo on in Slovenia.  I hope he keeps in touch and sends us a postcard.

This is a pic of El Pablo checking the map of Italy for the next leg of his trip.

Sending love to our warrior princess

Emma messaged me this week and I am sorry to say she is still feeling quite poorly with fighting infections, battling breathlessness and feeling quite down about her situation.

Emma is, and will always be, an inspiration to all of us in the LYDP and others.  She has achieved so much by setting up the project and giving encouragement to other donor recipients and those in waiting.  Thank goodness for Brad and the amazing Teddy who continue to give her love and strength.

She is very happy to see the Project growing so successfully with our recent achievement of 10,000 ducks on the map and the addition of two new countries.  That is a lot of smiles and, I’m sure, many new potential donors being registered.

 

Busy Duck Central

Hi all, September has come around very fast.  It will be Hallowe’en before we know it and then Rememberence Day and Christmas.  Lots of opportunities for special ducks.

Monday was a busy day at duck central with 10 of the 16 ducks logged on that day.

I thought I would share will you all a couple of my favourite logged duck posts.

Callum found Peach at Millennium Square, Bristol on Monday. Callum commented “This duck is awesome” so congratulations to whoever made it, you are officially awesome.

Callum posted a pic of Peaches:

https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10155350190712574&id=643232573&set=a.288500422573&source=48&ref=bookmarks

I was very pleased to have three of the six I left at University Hospital Wales on Monday logged.  I made some rainbow ducks for the Pride March in Cardiff last week but it was raining so I didn’t go.  I left them at the hospital instead.

Louise of Cardiff found one of the rainbow ducks in the lift when she was on her way to begin five days of treatment.  She says the lucky duck made her smile.  She will leave it somewhere else in the hospital to make someone else smile.

10,000 almost there

With 9874 ducks now on the world map, only another 126 to make the magical 10,000.  Although we all know we have spread the important message of organ, blood, tissue and bone marrow donation much, much further than that.

One of my favourite comments from today’s logged ducks was the lucky finder of Melissa Duck in Morrisons, Cortonwood, South Yorkshire.  “My husband has had non-hodgkins lymphoma twice”.  One of the treatments for this is a transplant of Stem Cells to encourage the bone marrow to produce white blood cells.  I guess this couple well know the importance of our message.

The Little Yellow Duck Project creates and distributes handcrafted gifts to raise global awareness of blood, bone marrow, organ and tissue donation.