“You can’t switch off from being a carer, it’s a full-time job” – Morley’s story

First encounter with CF

When I met my partner, I wasn’t aware of cystic fibrosis – in fact I’d never heard of it. Her son has CF, and as time went on I learnt more about it from seeing him do his physio and take his medication. But it’s hard to take in, and it’s been a learning curve. 

Greg is 23 now. He was one of the first people to get Kaftrio which has been a real lifechanging thing for him and our family. It’s changed him for the better and he’s a lot more active and much fitter now. He now works in IT, and managed to go to university as well. He’s done really well for himself and we’re incredibly proud of him. 

Prior to Kaftrio, he was quite unwell, having to take regular IVs, and living day by day. I was a fulltime carer for him during that time, and it wasn’t easy. You can’t switch off from being a carer, it’s a full-time job. That was part of the reason I started metal detecting as well, it was a way to take a break for a short time.

Fundraising for the Trust

You can’t put a price on the remarkable change in health Greg has had, so we’re incredibly grateful to be able to get that treatment on the NHS. We’re also hugely thankful for the campaigning work that the Trust did to secure those medicines, which is why I wanted to give something back. Some people do bike rides and some people run marathons, but to raise money for the Trust, I find people’s lost items using a metal detector!

I was already detecting as a hobby and people were offering money to thank me, but I enjoy getting the items back so I thought I’d set up the page for people to donate to the Trust instead.

I’ve been metal detecting since around 2011 – I went to a car boot sale and I saw something that looked interesting. It was an underwater metal detector from the 1970s and it looked cool so I bought it for a tenner to see if it would work. I didn’t know much about how it worked, so I contacted the manufacturer and they offered to send me the original manual. They also mentioned it was a collector’s item so I put it on eBay and got £300 for it. So then I bought a newer detector and went searching at the beach.

In the beginning, I found ring pulls and coins but found it very therapeutic. You switch off from the outside world, and you can lose a lot of time. Everything I’ve found has a story to it. I found things from Bronze Age axe heads to Roman coins and brooches. But the best thing I’ve found is new friends. It’s a great community. 

I’m only up the road from the beach, so lifeguards know me and let me know if someone loses something. More people heard about it on Facebook and suddenly I was travelling all over the county. Then more people started offering to help as well, and it just exploded. I realised I couldn’t do the whole county on my own, let alone the whole country, and so I started a group with people I metal detect with and before you knew it, it ended up national.

We’ve been on the news and covered in lots of national papers which raises awareness. When I was on TV, I had a thousand emails before lunchtime. It grew so much that I had to build a website and Regton’s, the metal detecting shop, sponsored it for us so we didn’t have to stump up the cost. 

As soon as the sun comes out we’re busy again. We find everything – rings, false teeth, hearing aids, watches, mobile phones. It’s such a joy to be able to hand back something someone has lost, and lots of people are grateful and want to donate after we help them. I lost my dad’s wedding ring before I started detecting and never got it back so I understand what it’s like. 

There’s a lot of people out there who don’t know about CF and other invisible conditions, so this is my (slightly unusual) way of shouting about them. It’s definitely brought awareness and we’re very proud of the community of people it’s brought together. 

If you need help finding a metallic item, or want to donate, click here to visit Morley's website.