Touched by stories of cancer survivors and their financial struggles, Cayman student Tyra Abell, at age 13, was moved to help them in her own way.
Leaning on her creativity and passion for art, Abell began making beaded jewellery – bracelets, chains and earrings – through her Beads2Cure initiative-turned business, raising money for the Cayman Islands Cancer Society.
Abell, now 17, with the help of her friends, has raised thousands of dollars for the cancer society and most recently hit a record $30,000 in donations from selling her jewellery, 100% of which goes to the local charity.
“It was very, very exciting. I was very proud of myself and the work that all of my members of the Beads2Cure team have done and the effort that we have put into everything… we’ve made such a big difference for the patients in Cayman,” she told the Cayman Compass in a recent interview.
So great were Abell’s efforts that the Cancer Society renamed its Extraordinary Student Volunteer Award, calling it the Tyra Abell Volunteer Award in her honour.
Dave O’Driscoll, CEO of the society, said, they were impressed by the commitment she has demonstrated from such a tender age, along with the impact of her beads.
“It’s blown everybody away [that] something so small that you never really gave much consideration to, which is just beads on a bracelet, has just swept Cayman away completely. And it is the ‘in thing’ to have,” he said.
A birthday gift
Abell’s fundraising journey began in 2019 when she met Jennifer Weber, the then head of the Cancer Society, at the CIBC Walk for a Cure event
“She told me how every penny counts for the Cancer Society and small donations make such a big difference in their effort to help the patients in the Cayman Islands. I was really inspired and moved by all of her words and stories,” Abell said.
The teenager said that conversation lit a spark within her to do something for her community.
“I had recently just gotten some beads from my aunt for my birthday, and I started to make bracelets for all my friends,” she said, adding she wondered if she could sell them “to help make a difference”.
She raised $500 selling them at a school musical, recalling they “completely sold out. I was super excited.”
Following that success, she began a club in September 2021, enlisting her friends at Cayman International School to help her make and sell the jewellery for the Cancer Society.
Soon her charity project grew, with her friends helping her run it on island while she is away at the University of Calgary in Canada, where she is studying business.
Cole Abell is the financial officer, Mateus Rocco is meetings manager, Madison Black is fundraiser coordinator and manager, and Lauren Pershick is social media manager.
Inspiring effort
Beads2Cure also has an Instagram page which showcases the jewellery available and where their pop-up stall will be.
Initially she used regular beads, but a year ago she received sponsorship from Ryde Cayman which enabled her to buy crystal beads. Since then, she said, sales of the bracelets have taken off.
Noting that every bracelet is different, she said she also loved the $5 bracelets they sell “because each one represents a different type of cancer and people… [are] able to buy a bracelet for a family member or a friend who has gone through that cancer and it’s able to really make them feel like they’re making a difference for that person,” she said.
Her favourite, she said, is her ‘warrior’ bracelet, which is a mix of colours.
Looking back on what she has accomplished, Abell said, “It’s just unbelievable how something so small as jewellery can just go such a big way and make such a difference,” she said.
O’Driscoll agreed, adding that Abell’s efforts should encourage and inspire others.
“To see someone so great and charitable coming out of school at such a young age where a lot of us don’t even consider doing charity work until… much later in our lives really makes you proud of the community that is being raised here in Cayman,” O’Driscoll said.
He said Abell has made it “cool” to do charity work.
Abell said she wants Cayman’s young people to consider what they can do for their community.
“Follow your dreams, follow your heart. You know what’s right inside of you and… everyone can make a difference. And all it takes is a little motivation, a little work. You can a hundred percent do it. Just go for it,” she said.
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