Buddy Bear Help is a children's aid organisation founded in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
in 2004 by
Eva Herlitz together with several international artists. ''"Every cent for the children"'' - with this motto ''Buddy Bear Help e.V.'' guarantees that 100 per cent of the donations and auction revenues from charity activities is used for the selected children's projects. All organisational and administrative costs are borne by the club members.
History
Furat al Jamil, an artist from
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, who designed the bears for her country for the
United Buddy Bears
''Buddy Bears'' are painted, life-size fiberglass bear sculptures developed by German businesspeople Klaus and Eva Herlitz, in cooperation with sculptor Roman Strobl. They have become a landmark of Berlin and are considered unofficial ambassad ...
project, wanted to help, with the support of ''Buddy Bär Berlin GmbH'', a five-year-old boy in
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
who had a tumor behind his eye and the surgical removal of which was not possible in Baghdad. The boy was to be brought to Berlin for the surgery. Since funds were not immediately available, the help offered came too late.
In order to be able to help quicker, in a more targeted and bureaucratic manner, the ''Buddy Bear Help'' organisation was founded in 2004. To send a political message at the time of the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
, one of the founding members of the club was Marsha Coats (wife of
U.S. Ambassador to Germany
The United States has had diplomatic relations with the nation of Germany and its principal predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Prussia, since 1835. These relations were broken twice (1917 to 1921, and 1941 to 1955) while Germany and the United St ...
from 2001 - 2005,
Daniel R. Coats
Daniel Ray Coats (born May 16, 1943) is an American politician, attorney, and former diplomat. From 2017 to 2019, he served as the Director of National Intelligence in the Trump administration. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a ...
).
Help for Children in Need
Since 2004, children in need (''Kindern in Not'') have been helped worldwide. Among other things, the financing of heart surgeries for children in
La Paz
La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...
(
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
) was secured, a school project for
Maasai Maasai may refer to:
* Maasai people
*Maasai language
* Maasai mythology
* MAASAI (band)
See also
* Masai (disambiguation)
* Massai
Massai (also known as: Masai, Massey, Massi, Mah–sii, Massa, Wasse, Wassil or by the nickname "Big Foot" Mas ...
in
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
was implemented, in 2009 the construction of a school for
AIDS orphans
An AIDS orphan is a child who became an orphan because one or both parents died from AIDS.
In statistics from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UN ...
in Tepa Tepa, a small village near
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania.
It is the fifth largest fre ...
, was completed. In other school projects, individual children in
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
and
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
as well as several schools in
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
were supported.
The organisation
''Die Arche'' has been steadily supported by the activities of
Buddy Bär since 2003. Since 2009, ''Die Arche'' has also been supported by Buddy Bear Help, with the organisation carrying the costs of rent for the new Arche location in
Berlin-Wedding
Wedding (german: der Wedding; ) is a locality in the borough of Mitte, Berlin, Germany and was a separate borough in the north-western inner city until it was fused with Tiergarten and Mitte in Berlin's 2001 administrative reform. At the same tim ...
. Yet the organisation also wants to enable schoolchildren in Berlin to put themselves into the shoes of children who are less fortunate.
''Buddy Bear Help e.V.'' and ''Campus Bildung im Quadrat'' in Berlin
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Buddy Bear Help
2004 establishments in Germany
Children's charities based in Germany
Health charities in Germany
Organizations established in 2004
Non-profit organisations based in Berlin