Rare Bears started out as a small effort to support children with rare diseases. Now, it is a global non-profit that has an army behind it. This organization makes one-of-a-kind teddy bears for children around the world, reminding children that they are unique and giving them a soft friend to cuddle with. Yahoo! News reported on this effort to help rare disease patients, and you can find that news segment here.

Rare Bears for Rare Diseases

This effort was inspired by Dr. Christina Waters of Rare Science, an organization that focuses on accelerating treatments for rare diseases. Dr. Waters reached out to her mother, Tonita, to create a mascot for her organization. From there, the Rare Bear Army was born.

Tonita worked with just a few sewers initially, as the cause was just starting out. Soon after, she reached out to the Quilters Guild, where there were plenty of talented sewers on hand, like Michiko Rice. While they worked on this effort by themselves in the beginning, the army has grown significantly since then. In fact, it has taken five years for the number of sewers to grow to 7,000.

Bears are now made and sent from across the world, all with the intention of brightening the days of rare disease patients. The children are given a friend and a reminder that they are one-of-a-kind.

To learn more about the Rare Bear Program, click here.