Fund Me, KC: My Bear Jeff spreads comfort to child trauma survivors, bear to bear
December 5, 2019 | Startland News Staff
Startland News is continuing its “Fund Me, KC” series to highlight area entrepreneurs’ efforts to accelerate their businesses. This is an opportunity for entrepreneurs — like Rachel Cohen with her My Bear Jeff campaign — to share their crowdfunding stories to gain a little help from their supporters.
Rachel Cohen, My Bear Jeff
Who are you?
Rachel Cohen, Chief Bear Officer at My Bear Jeff. I’m passionate about people, companies and movements that drive to create impact and positive change to everyone around us.
What is My Bear Jeff?
My Bear Jeff is a buy one, give one teddy bear company to support kids dealing with trauma. Every time a bear is purchased, its twin is delivered to a qualifying child through our nonprofit partners.
Click here for the My Bear Jeff Kickstarter page.
What’s your ‘why’?
I created this company from the intersection of several personal experiences. The first being a rare heart diagnosis at the age of 4 and recovering from a high-risk procedure that could have cost my life. The second came from my time in Southeast Asia working with children who were dealing with extreme trauma every day. I returned home with a pure, burning desire to support these kids.
My Bear Jeff
How much do you hope to raise with the crowdfunding campaign?
What do you plan to use the funds for?
To place our first production order of 2,500 bears.
How are you differentiating your campaign?
While the product has some uniqueness to it, the mission is unique. For each bear purchased, one will be donated to a nonprofit partner working with kids who deal with trauma.
My Bear Jeff
Is there anything quirky with your campaign?
Nothing super quirky about it unless you consider teddy bears quirky?
What’s some advice you have to others launching a crowdfunding campaign?
Tell all your friends, do lots of research, find where the real/raw pain is, hone in on exactly what your business is/what you’re selling and make it clear and concise.
If you or your startup is running a crowdfunding campaign, let us know by contacting news@startlandnews.com
This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.
For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn
2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Not just for students: MCPL expands digital tool set for entrepreneurs
Editor’s note: The following content is sponsored by Mid-Continent Public Library but independently produced by Startland News. Dusty books. Tedious silence. Cranky shushers. Many stereotypes come to mind when one thinks of a library. But for those who haven’t recently visited these sanctums of knowledge, you might be surprised to see their transformations from canvas…
Children’s book turns KC’s Mayor Sly into time-traveling history buff
Kansas City’s colorful mayor was made for the pages of a children’s book, Audrey Masoner said. He gets his hand-drawn debut in “Mayor Sly and the Magic Bow Tie,” a project co-authored by Masoner and Mayor Sly James’ daughter, Aja James. The book is featured in Startland News’ 2017 Made in Kansas City Gift Guide.…
Storyteller sketches path from former Soviet Union to KC-based Sibukop
The teeth marks on Jasur Rakhimov’s Apple Pencil aren’t his own. They belong to his young daughter, Jasmira, who — despite a new protective pencil box — still loves to chew on the tools of his trade, he said. “Everybody and everything has its own story,” reflected Rakhimov, running his fingers across the indentions from…
MTC renews 2018 support for LaunchKC grant contest
Despite the government program’s uncertain financial future, the Missouri Technology Corporation will inject $250,000 into the popular grants contest LaunchKC for 2018. After having its budget slashed from nearly $23 million in 2017 to $3.4 million in 2018, the MTC announced Friday that it will once again support the Kansas City-based grant contest, which has…