Name: Alan Perry

From: Eden Prairie, MN

How long have you been collecting? 18 years

How many pins do you own? 2000+

My wife and I were attending the men's single's gold medal tennis match on Centre Court at Wimbledon. During a break, I hurried down to the men's restroom so not to miss any of the tennis action. To my dismay, there was a long line extending out from the men's restroom entrance. Mumbling to myself, I got into the line and waited. As we slowly marched forward, I casually noticed the man behind me was wearing a shirt and badge with the NBC-TV (US) logo on it. Being a pin enthusiast and knowing NBC was the US broadcaster, I asked him if, by any chance, he had any pins to trade.

"Sorry, I don't have any to trade," he said, as I noticed he wasn't wearing any pins. As I was about to politely thank him anyway, he said, "But I do have one that I'll give you."

Expecting to see a generic NBC pin, he surprised me when he pulled a large, colourful pin out of his pocket. It was a beautiful pin of the London Bridge with a double-decker bus that moved from one end of the bridge to the other along a slide, and, of course, the NBC logo and Olympic rings. I told him it was a fantastic pin! He beamed with pride and in the midst of a large smile said, "Thank you...I designed it!"

So, here I was... at Wimbledon... near Centre Court... during the London Olympics... watching the men's single's gold medal game..., receiving a free NBC Olympic pin... from the very person who had designed it... What could be better!