
2020 Charity Miniature
The Dunchurch is infested. One man saw it coming – He is The Karakel.
Tom was a geek, gamer and keeper of a literal mountain of un-painted models. We met in school and for over 2 decades he was a constant and effortless presence and influence in my life – Through our prolonged MSN Messenger and Whatsapp chats, as well as trips to the cinema, to the pub after the cinema and long discussions in the car park outside the pub after closing time. It’s gutting to think that his sarcasm, humour, his encyclopedic knowledge of pc parts, weapons, Sony products and sci-fi mythologies, his generosity and his advice now only exist as memories.
When he walked into hospital, Tom was concerned, but confident that he was in the right place to get fixed up. A few days later the doctors informed him it was aggressive final stage terminal bowel cancer – he was 34 years old. He was placed on a hot, dimly lit and noisy ward and he struggled. The bed was the wrong size, treatments were confused, he couldn’t sleep and all hope of making it home one last time faded, it was soul-destroying.
But then finally, he was transferred to St. Gemma’s, a peaceful, comfortable, well staffed hospice environment where he spent his final days reminiscing with friends, sipping cold drinks and listening to gentle rainfall in a garden just a few metres from the end of his bed.
This miniature is created from moments and memories, it was something I had to sculpt.
–Mike
Zombie Hunter Karakel was a Limited Edition miniature created as a tribute to my friend Tom, who was taken from us in 2019. We raised an amazing £580 for St. Gemma’s Hospice in Leeds, UK.
It was such a cool learning experience, I was quite unprepared for all the touching messages of support from all around the world.
So, thank you everyone! You people are amazing. We should do it again one day.