Jörg Richter is no stranger to difficult bike rides. In fact, shares KRDO, Richter has ridden his bike across the United States – from coast to coast – seven times before. Now, the news explains, Richter will be taking on an eighth endeavor. This time, he hopes to raise funds and awareness for the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization: the Care-for-Rare Foundation.
Jörg’s Story
For as long as he can remember, Jörg Richter has loved riding bikes. They quickly became his life, his passion – something he never minded throwing time into. As a young child, he remembers thinking that riding his bike across the United States would be a dream come true. But while Richter has enjoyed the journey, he wanted there to be some deeper meaning to what he was doing. When he discovered that his family friend’s child was diagnosed with a rare condition, Richter suddenly knew what he had to do.
Through his trip, which began in San Francisco, CA this past March, Richter hopes to raise awareness of the over 7,000 rare diseases in the world. More so, he hopes that raising funds and awareness will spur rare disease research. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be difficult to find funding for rare disease research, especially in those with a smaller community.
So far, Richter has helped raise thousands of dollars for Care-for-Rare, and hopes to continue this venture in the future. If all goes well, he will touch down in New York by the fall of 2022. We wish him nothing less than amazing luck on his journey!
What is the Care-for-Rare Foundation?
The Care-for-Rare Foundation is a nonprofit organization that aims to help children with rare disease through alliance, aid, and academy. According to the Care-for-Rare America website, the organization’s mission is:
to establish a global alliance in order to identify the genetic causes of rare diseases and develop effective treatments, following a three-stage approach: recognize, understand, cure.
The Foundation itself was established in 2009, with the American branch being established in 2019. Current initiatives include VEOIBD, KAND, HK1, and developing a global alliance.
