Old sports medals

[OrtIrect]

Any idea on what to do with old sports medals? My parent died five years ago after decades of competing in a sport. They had drawers and drawers of medals. So many, the bottom of the drawers is sagging. The medals have events/years on them so no good for a sports team to reuse. I only want to keep one or two. Any thoughts on how to recycle or repurpose? It seems so wasteful just to chuck them.

I am also facing a similar problem with my own child - a tonne of football trophies and shields. I wish teams didn’t hand these out. It was ok when the kids were very small
and delighted. Seems unnecessary now the kids are secondary school
age.

I suppose it would depend what they are made from.

What did you do?

If they’re metal put them in metal re cycling at the tip

If you wanted to keep the medals, you could have them set in resin and use it as a table top (or wall hanging, flooring, you name it) perhaps? Or between glass if resin isn't suitable / appropriate.

Could do something similar with your sons awards - cut out the symbols and plaques and have them set or displayed? Have the rest of the metal and plastic melted down.

Keeping one or two as a memory sounds like a good call. For the rest, you could try a local metal recycler some take medals if you remove the ribbons. Another option is to repurpose a few into a framed display or shadow box. For your child’s trophies, some charities or schools might accept them for reuse or crafts. Definitely agree it can get out of hand quickly.

I don’t know if this is still a live topic, but if it is helpful for anyone, I found my old medals in the loft and my young children have really enjoyed playing with them in all sorts of ways. So you could ask a local nursery or reception class if they’d like them, and I imagine most would be grateful.