It's Not About the Money....

"It's not about the money, money, money, We don't need your money, money, money, We just wanna make the world dance, Forget about the price tag"

So sang Jessie J at the closing ceremony for the 2012 Olympics. They are the same words that have been running through my head since I got a notification through yesterday evening that the Little Yellow Duck Project (LYDP) had hit the news headlines.I was on the long journey back from London after my little boy’s hospital appointment and he had just fallen asleep in the car. My husband was driving and I finally had a chance to check up on my emails and text messages. I think it’s safe to say that the last thing I was expecting was to find that the LYDP was making news headlines around the world!However as I read on, my excitement quickly turned into concern as I quickly realised that we seemed to be in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

“Thousands of rubber ducks stuffed with cash are sent around the world!”

“Mystery of Cash Giving Yellow Ducks Has been Solved!”

Hold on a minute….rubber ducks stuffed with cash? Mystery donors?  Was I actually reading about the Little Yellow Duck Project here?  Yes, I must be, I realised, because my photo of Clare - with the duck I gave her one Christmas - is smiling back at me in all the articles. And as I read on, I recognised more extracts from the website, this blog and quotes from articles that her wonderful Mum, Ann Rowcliffe, had given in the past were appearing. What was going on?As I read on, the penny dropped.  A few weeks ago someone had shared a link on our Facebook group to a local newspaper article from Kent that was reporting on how various plastic bath ducks had been found in the area with a typed note and cash attached to them. No one knew who had left them but it had been suggested that there might be a link to the LYD Project at some point.When I had first seen that article I had wondered the same thing myself. There did seem to be similarities in that yellow ducks were involved along with random acts of kindness. But, unlike the LYDP ducks, these ducks were not handmade by volunteers, they did not carry our official tag and they made no mention of the real message behind our campaign – saving lives through blood and organ donation.  None of our supporters knew anything about a link and so I assumed that it was either a co-incidence or that someone had read about the LYDP and decided to do copy the idea to promote some seasonal goodwill.If you’ve ever wanted to see an example of how fast a less-than-accurate news story can circle the globe, this is it. Within hours the story went from a suggestion of a link in a local newspaper in Kent, to a confirmed “revelation” in a British national newspaper, then becoming a headline on one of the top USA news websites and newspaper websites around the world.Having spent years working on projects to raise awareness-raising of organ donation and spent day after day sending out press releases and contacting journalists, I'm only too aware that money can’t buy this kind of media coverage. The value of worldwide publicity like this can not be overstated, and to have journalists choosing to promote your cause is just priceless.However the part that saddens me about all this is that the real message about the LYD Project has been somewhat buried under a story about cash. For  months generous, kind-hearted people around the world have put hours into handcrafting little yellow ducks as gifts for strangers. They have given these gifts expecting nothing in return, other than to brighten someone’s day and to encourage more of us to save lives through blood and organ donation. They never usually know where their painstakingly crafted gifts end up or if they are appreciated. But they live in hope that they will have lifted someone’s spirits and saved a life or two in the process.Yet none of this has ever hit the headlines. Nearly 2,500 handmade ducks have been reported from 56 countries around the world and we estimate that this represents just 25% of those that have actually been sent out into their world with their messages of love and hope.  And yet, as soon as money is involved, it’s a headline. As soon as a handful of crisp banknotes start appearing in random places, the story becomes exciting. Who will be next? Could it be you? Who is the person who is giving away money? Why would they DO that?They say that all publicity is good publicity and this is undoubtedly true.  Despite the inaccuracies of the story, thankfully the true message is getting out thanks to people visiting our website and finding it out for themselves. I have been so touched by the messages of support and from those who have said they will now start crafting their own little life-saving ducks to spread the message to others.The true story is indeed exciting and uplifting, but it’s not – and never will be – because of money. The LYD Project has never fundraised for money, it has never distributed money and it has never spent any money. It’s about the difference that we can each make in the world, whether that’s by lovingly making a gift of a duck for a stranger or giving the gift of life through blood or organ donation.And it’s about something that money can never buy and which is greater than any amount of financial resources – it’s about hope. Right now hundreds of thousands of people around the world need blood and bone marrow transfusions and organ or tissue transplants. Without the gift of a stranger they will die. They live in hope that someone will give them the gift of life and a second chance…a gift that no money can buy.Wishing you all a peaceful and restful Christmas,Emma x