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My mother has been a volunteer at the Fundacion Cardio Infantil in Bogota, Colombia for many years. She is involved with raising money to help cover the costs of assisting children and their very poor families that require treatment at the foundation.
One of the latest and very successful projects, is the purchase of the bears you see in the pictures above, these bears are given to children before they go into open heart surgery. The primary purpose of the bears is that children can hug the bear when they feel the need to cough, a very common occurrence after open heart surgery. Hugging the bear helps reduce the pain.
A secondary and just as powerful effect, is the fact that when they come out of surgery and into the recovery room; with the bear at their side also having had a 'procedure' done, they are concerned for the bear more than they are concerned about themselves. And, for whatever reason, they are recovering faster which is the best result anyone can hope for. It is also important to mention that the bear is some times the only companion these children have since their parents need to be working or looking after other members of the family.
The cost of each bear is about $ 8 USD. They are consumed at a rate of about 50 per month. The bears are hand made by local women who also benefit from the work. They are made from a hypoallergenic material well suited for the conditions of the ICU.
Please donate what ever you can; every dollar is welcome and it makes a difference. Because this charity is outside the USA, this donation may NOT be tax deductible in the USA.
If you donate for more than 25 bears, ($ 200) you can choose a name for that batch of bears. Like the one you can see here. I will ensure that you receive a picture of 'your' bear looking after a patient.
Finally, would you please pass this information along to others that would like to help this nice cause.
Thank you!
