Introduction

Rachelle McCray is a devoted daughter and kidney disease advocate. Kidney disease affects millions of families every day. This episode digs into the family perspective of someone on dialysis and just how important organ donation is for so many people. We also chat about her amazing foundation and how important wellness is whether you have a chronic disease or not.

The MinMinBear Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization was officially launched to educate the public on the importance of organ donation. The Foundation is led by Founder, Rachelle McCray, TV Personality (QVC, Arizona Living, etc.) and former Miss Arizona and Arizona Cardinals NFL cheerleader.

Every year, the MinMinBear Foundation will choose a new mission to help those affected by chronic illnesses, like kidney disease, which leads to organ donation. The Board of Directors will help seek out people and causes that need support, and the Foundation’s mascots, the MinMinBear and friends- three teddy bears including MinMinBear™, AlbieBear™and WinskiBear™- go to work to help. The Foundation also partners with other non-profit organizations around the country, research and development firms, transplant centers, hospitals, children's camps and more to maximize their positive impact.

The foundation’s first initiative is the MinMinBear Challenge across social media (#MinMinBearChallenge), which will showcase the bears throughout all 50 states to help find a perfect match. For the inaugural challenge, the mission is to help a woman named Mindy find her kidney match. Mindy is an Alport Syndrome patient and the inspiration for the MinMinBear; Mindy is also the mother of founder, Rachelle McCrary.

“It is an honor to launch a foundation that has the potential to both help someone I love dearly, my mother, as well as find matches for so many others who are in critical need of an organ transplant. My hope is to help raise awareness of the urgent need for organ donors and find matches for as many in need as possible.” said Rachelle McCray, Founder.

MinMinBear actually took shape several years prior as an initiative led by McCray while she was Miss Arizona (2011) for the National Kidney Foundation in Arizona. Today, it is it’s own non-profit and continues to work in collaboration with the National Kidney Foundation.

How to Participate

The challenge encourages people to show where these stuffed bears go, how they are loved, and to share MinMinBear’s story in hopes of helping her find the perfect kidney match.

The aim is that this challenge will not only help Mindy, but it will also help others like her, who wait for a life-saving organ transplant. Here’s how it works:

Purchase or Gift the Bear- Purchase MinMinBear™, AlbieBear™, or WinskiBear™ for yourself or someone special OR grab your favorite stuffed animal at home.

Live Your Best Life- Take your purchased bear OR your favorite stuffed animal and live your best life with them. Is that a beach day, Netflix movie night, playground playdate, selfie friend, homeschool day or even dialysis buddy?

Snap Pic and Post- Take a fun picture of your stuffed animal living its most: crazy, adventurous, exciting, fun, everyday… life! Then, post the pic with the challenge instructions in step 4 to your social media. Keep in mind you can repeat this step over and over again!

Challenge Three Friends- Copy and paste challenge information and challenge at least three friends to do the same. Then use the donate button and monetarily support the foundation to help keep the mission alive. #minminbearchallenge

No MinMinBear? No worries! Use your favorite stuffed animal friend, and follow the same above steps. To learn more visit: www.minminbearfoundation.org/minminbear-challenge
MinMinBear Foundation is currently taking submissions for their 2021 MinMinsMission focus. If you'd like to submit your idea, please visit: www.minminbearfoundation.org/contact

About MinMinBear Foundation

In 2002, Rachelle McCray's mother found herself in need of a kidney donor to save her life after her kidney disease had progressed to end-stage renal failure. On April 12, 2005, at the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Scottsdale, Mindy's father-in-law selflessly donated his kidney—giving her a second chance at life. Knowing personally the beauty that can come from organ donation, Rachelle decided to bring public attention to the need for kidney disease education, organ donation awareness, and patient aid through the sale of a stuffed toy named MinMinBears after her mom's nickname, MinMin. Rachelle, who was Miss Arizona United States in 2011, launched the MinMinBear Initiative to share her personal story on a public level and to help others in need. All of the proceeds from the original MinMinBears launch benefited the National Kidney Foundation of Arizona and supported public education and direct patient aid. At the time, there were two different stuffed toy bears, one representing a kidney donor and the other that represented a kidney recipient.

Now, fifteen years later, Mindy faces the need for a second transplant, something that is very common among transplant recipients, as kidneys last approximately 10-15 years depending on several factors. Although many friends and family members offered to be tested, none proved to be a successful match. Rachelle decided to relaunch the MinMinBear initiative that helped so many others, this time to help her own mom! In 2020, she set up MinMinBear Foundation as its own non-profit and today they continue to work in collaboration with the National Kidney Foundation. A third bear named WinskiBear was added to the collection to represent the friends and family who support the recipient and donor on this journey. www.minminbearfoundation.org

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