As a company which supports women when making a choice on whether to have breast surgery, we thought it would be a good idea to also sponsor a charity that celebrates women who have suffered from breast cancer.
Mr Lambe worked for many years at The Christie Hospital in Didsbury where he led the breast reconstruction team there and experienced first-hand the strength and bravery of the women throughout their breast cancer journey, from diagnosis, to surgery, to having a single or double mastectomy and going on to have breast reconstruction surgery.
He met Mr Apostolos at The Christie and identified him as a great surgeon who worked well in a team, which is why he works at Reflect Clinic today, developing his interest in cosmetic surgery, skincare and highlighting the new developments in the aesthetics industry.
With this in mind, I decided to sponsor Sarah E Pickles after hearing about the incredible journey that she has been on from diagnosis, to operations and on to her recovery.
Sarah was diagnosed with triple negative stage 3 progressive breast cancer at the age of 32. She was married to Dave W Pickles with a daughter Lillie age 4.
She was told the devastating news and realised that she would have to fight the fight of her and her family’s lives. She says she had “one choice only; to fight or die. Live and love or lose it all forever.”
This huge shock led her to writing an Amazon best selling book which aims to support other breast cancer sufferers, called The Shock Factor and still available on Amazon now.
She decided to fight it with all her might and thus she made it her mission to inspire other women in their journey. As she was battling through she decided that if she survived she would champion the other women she had met along the way and set up an awards ceremony to cheer them on as they had been invaluable to her and her family.
She said “If I can do it, then there is hope for all the tough and beautiful women around the world who have been diagnosed with Breast Cancer.
My love, prayers and hope will always be with those women who have, are and will go through what were the darkest days of my life. Never Give Up Ladies!”
Her dream came true last Friday, 22nd September 2023 when she held the inaugural awards ceremony at the beautiful Vale Royal Abbey in Cheshire.
Read more about her story here.
As a sponsor we were duly invited to attend the inaugural event and wow she did herself (and us!) proud. Her attention to detail included a special prize of a butterfly in a box that the winners could launch themselves after the event to demonstrate their own rise from a cocoon into a fully flying butterfly spreading their wings!
Reflect sponsored the Butterfly Medal Recognition Award which is the category that honours individuals who have made significant contributions to the campaign against breast cancer. This award is designed to recognise individuals who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to raising awareness about breast cancer, promoting early detection and supporting those affected by the disease.
Kim Smith of Radio Northwich did a fantastic job of presenting on the night, even though it got emotional at times.
The nominees were evaluated by the impact of their work on the breast cancer community, the scope of their efforts and the level of dedication they have shown to the cause.
There were many award finalists and sponsors on the night, so please look on Sarah’s own website for the full list coming soon.
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AWARD CATEGORIES
Other award categories included:-
- Inspirational Empowerment
- Innovation
- Community Volunteer
- Charity Impact
- Judge’s Choice
- Transformed Life
And we even bumped into Sue France of Creative Connecting in Cheshire, inspirational networking group for women of Cheshire, who won a surprise award too on the night – a little butterfly may have told us before and we had to keep it a secret! 😉
Other kind sponsors of the awards were:-
- “Get it Off Your Chest” Book and Podcast by Andrea and Estelle Maher
- Aqueous Digital SEO, websites and reputation management
- Centre of Excellence online training
- Love the Dentist, Dentists in Chester and Mobberley
- MGC Aerospace specialists in supply and distribution of aerospace hardware
- Write Blend Bookshop and pop up record store, based in Liverpool and home of TAUK publishing house
- CoppaFeel breast cancer awareness charity which distributes knowledge and useful reminders on how to check your breasts for lumps and changes
- Radio Northwich founded by vivacious Kim Smith
- Cheshire Life our quintessentially English Cheshire magazine championing women in the area. Editor Joanne Goodwin
- hiqweb design
- A J and Friends charity set up by Bev (AJ’s Mum) to provide face to face counselling, wellbeing services, respite & stay & play sessions for children & young people with complex additional needs.
If you would like to sponsor an award, donate a prize or attend the event in 2024, then keep a close eye on Sarah’s Butterfly Awards website as it is sure to be a fantastic event for next year too!
Joanna Lambe
Marketing Director
Reflect Clinic Ltd