Bring On The Clowns

When we started Face Painting as a group, there were not that many who were any good.  Myself included.  What we lacked in artistic flair, we more than made up for in enthusiasm.  We had a few designs, some paints and a lot of good intentions.

The chief motivator with the brush was Sue.  She really liked working with the children.  Her enthusiasm was infectious.  Pretty soon we had a core group of painters.  We would go out and do events.  We would not take any money for ourselves, however if growlies, hamburgers and hotdogs, were laid on, we were more than happy to indulge.

On one occasion, we were approached by a clown - a real clown; big red nose, bigger shoes and white and red paint on his face.  His name was Milo the Clown.  I also knew him as Miles.  He was one of the Transport Drivers who worked at CFB Halifax.

Miles would drop into my office once in a while for a pick up or a delivery.  When he would drop by we would schmooze, talk about events we did or events coming up. 

One afternoon the conversation deviated slightly.  Miles asked if my group would be interested in learning how to Face Paint professionally.  My guard went up, as I thought I was going to be asked to compensate Miles for his time.  I did not want to pass on any more expenses to the group, as everything we did was out of pocket. 

I asked Miles what he had in mind.  Miles stated that he wanted to teach a "small group of Klingons" how to effectively and efficiently Face Paint.  From that core group, we could in turn teach other Klingons how to Face Paint.

This sounded good, but why? 

Qel Iv/Paul Carreau & Milo (Miles Lahey) The Clown

Miles told me that he was a clown to make extra money on the side.  He considered himself a Busker.  He went on to state that he was conflicted when he was asked to donate his time for charitable events.  He did not like to say no.  He saw in us, the Klingons, a way of not saying no, when he said no.

"I can't make it, however I know a group of people who would love the opportunity to come out and support your event." 

As Miles explained it, it was a win/win for him.  Because we did not charge, we were not in competition with him.  He did not want to be in the position of saying "no" to a charity because at some point in time he would love to help, but saying "no" could mean he would not be invited back.

Six of the SonchIy went to Miles home and were taught the finer points of Face Painting.

As a result of that, Sue and I were asked to join the Metro City Funsters in Halifax.  That was a group of local Clowns and Buskers who got together to network and share tips and experiences.

In my opinion, we were being recognized by our peers for what we had accomplished and the standard we had set.  We weren't just clowns in Klingon costumes.