New life for your old trophies

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Sensei Carl Hayes, in Tallahassee, FL, recently posted this to the JudoList mailing list:

Kids love trophies.

I have discovered that it is easy to get donations of old trophies that people have had on their shelves forever. These, however, are seldom Judo trophies. They have figurines on top, specific to various sports such as baseball, golf, bowling. To make a Judo trophy that I can give to a kid in my dojo, I have to replace the figurine on top with a Judo figurine. Then I have to replace the engraved plate that is affixed usually to the base.

I am about to receive, as a gift, an engraving machine, so I can make new engraved plates to attach, but I need a source for Judo figurines to go on top of the trophies. Haven't found a vendor. Anyone have a source? Anyone have extras to give away? Anyone want to sell, or trade?

It's a shame I didn't know about Sensei Hayes last year during the dojo move. We cleared out boxes and boxes of trophies that had accumulated over 30+ years. Well, we'll know better 30 years from now if we have to move again.

If any of you folks have old judo trophies gathering dust, let me know and either I can put you in touch with Sensei Hayes or I can send him the figurines myself. Or if you know a local dojo with a similar need, perhaps you can help them out.

I wonder myself where those figurines come from. Surely someone must still make them — ideally at a reasonable cost?

I was happy to send my own modest collection. It was a small favor to do for a guy who's willing to take the trouble to make kids happy.

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