Why Starfish?

'Whilst on holiday in Goa in 1993, I mocked my wife as she stood there throwing starfish that had been washed up on the shore back into the sea. I asked what is the point? There are thousands, you are just wasting your time. Her compassionate heart got the better of her and she carried on in spite of my words. She said it matters to this one and proceeded to throw it back in.

Upon arriving back in the UK we were recounting the story to a friend. She informed us of the story written by Loren Eisley and his interpretation. I was blown away.

That experience has had a profound impact upon me and my view of ‘the little, insignificant things.’

For I have come to realise that it is just those little, small, insignificant things that we do that have the greatest impact.

Andy Skyrme – Starfish Founder

Once a man was walking along a beach. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. Off in the distance he could see a person going back and forth between the surf's edge and the beach. Back and forth this person went. As the man approached he could see that there were hundreds of starfish stranded on the sand as the result of the natural action of the tide.

The man was stuck by the apparent futility of the task. There were far too many starfish. Many of them were sure to perish. As he approached, the person continued the task of picking up starfish one by one and throwing them into the surf.

As he came up to the person he said, ‘You must be crazy. There are thousands of miles of beach covered with starfish. You can't possibly make a difference.’ The person looked at the man. He then stooped down and pick up one more starfish and threw it back into the ocean. He turned back to the man and said, ‘It sure made a difference to that one!’