MAYFIELD, Ky. — "Mayfield Strong" and "Pray for Mayfield" T-shirts and yard signs have been placed through the town of Mayfield since Friday's deadly tornado that killed 21 people in Graves County. Hawkins Screen Printing is who is responsible for spreading the positive messages on T-shirts and yard signs.
"Mayfield Strong" has become synonymous with the town of 10,000 and the people behind it are Robert Hawkins and his mother Wanda Hawkins.
The mother-son duo has been serving the Mayfield community since 1993. Their T-shirt, yard sign campaign "Mayfield Strong" and "Pray for Mayfield" aims to donate a portion of the sales to tornado relief efforts in Mayfield. Robert Hawkins’ passion is making T-shirts for his community and especially when a good cause is involved.
“The need for the T-shirt was just something to keep everybody’s focus on what it used to be but yet what it is,” said Hawkins.
The T-shirts and yard signs Hawkins Screen Printing are making are flying off the shelf faster than he can make them. The two have been spending late nights in their design studio to get everyone a shirt and yard sign that wants one. A percentage of all of their T-shirt sales will go to tornado relief in Mayfield.
“Can’t get bread that fresh, they’re ready to wear when they come out of the dryer, said Hawkins.
Making the T-shirts and yard signs is a tedious task that takes skill and patience, Robert is able to do so with his mom as his business partner Wanda.
“And he is wonderful to work with. Sometimes we get a little ticked at one another but we just tell one another what we think and we go on. The only thing is, he’s not organized and what I have to do is follow him around like a nurse to make sure he has all of his tools. I make sure he has it so he can go right to work,” said Wanda Hawkins.
Every single one of Robert’s tools play a part in the "Mayfield Strong" shirts and yard signs. Everything from different paint supplies to mechanical machinery that holds T-shirts and signs down before getting the designs. It’s all important and necessary to the impact Robert wants to make on his Mayfield community.
“It’s a community of its own, it’s more like being one big family than it is 10,000 people living here in Mayfield. I’m not a negative person so I’m already excited to see what Mayfield is going to turn into. We’re a great community, everybody is for each other and we stand as one,” said Hawkins.
Hawkins Screen Printing also offers shipping throughout the United States if you cannot pick up a shirt or sign in store. If you would like to support the relief effort by ordering a sign or T-shirt you can call 270-247-9332 or send an email.