Jerry the Bear is an interactive tool that empowers children with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) to master their medical procedures. The company behind Jerry, Sproutel, is reinventing diabetes education through play. Last year, just two percent of children with the condition played with Jerry, fed him food, checked his blood sugar levels and gave him insulin. Now, the company has sets its sights on a higher goal: getting Jerry in the hands of every child diagnosed with T1D, a vision that, with the help of Bitcoin, can help change the lives of over 12,000 children.
This beneficial tool gives children the power to learn everything about their condition in a manner that is completely interactive and challenging. Jerry the Bear delivers a complex curriculum that teaches everything from symptom diagnosis to carb counting. While taking care of Jerry, kids will unlock a series of 21 animated storybooks that tell the tale of Jerry training for the All Star Games. These stories and tasks were developed with the help of doctors, educators and parents. From the help of BitPay, donations can be made via Bitcoin at no cost, so that 100 percent of donations can be used to benefit this life-changing effort.
Sproutel’s decision to accept Bitcoin comes from a desire to embrace the new and exciting digital currency, further sparking interest in the campaign and increasing the impact Jerry the Bear can have on every child diagnosed this year. Bitcoin donations can be made to the campaign via the product’s website, coupled with a simple checkout process from BitPay. The campaign is a perfect example of the opportunity and benefits that Bitcoin creates for charitable organizations, allowing charities to receive a full 100 percent of donations with no costly credit/debit card processing fees, while remaining tax deductible.
Although the campaign has a wide range of donation options, a $299 donation will provide one Jerry the Bear to a child with Type 1 Diabetes. Thus far, Sproutel has raised over $40,000, which is double their original goal. However, the company has a stretch goal of $179,000 to provide Jerry the Bear to five percent of children in need. If the stretch goal is met, ContextMedia, a campaign partner will also donate 30 bears to hospital waiting rooms so that 20 percent will be able to experience Jerry the Bear. Even more amazingly, there is also a sizeable donation level of nearly $3 Million that will provide the 12,000 kids dealing with Type 1 Diabetes with a Jerry the Bear of their very own.
The Jerry the Bear campaign is working hard to make a monumental difference in the lives of others and the future of kids throughout the nation. This matches the vision at Sproutel of creating similar technologies for all children who are diagnosed with chronic illness. By making a Bitcoin contribution, you will be trading digital currency for warm and fuzzies. Sounds like a no brainer.