NEW YORK – June 26, 2020 – JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, will hold a 12-hour charity fundraiser on Twitch this Saturday, June 27^th to bring together people who have a common interest in livestreaming as well as a common goal: to put an end to type 1 diabetes.

Tomorrow’s 12-hour marathon will feature streamers with T1D connections playing popular video games including EA Sports Madden Football, League of Legends, Bartlow’s Dread Machine, and Elder Scrolls Online, and will culminate in two hours of Jackbox party games hosted by JDRF’s Greater Bay Area Chapter. Visit JDRF’s Twitch channel at http://www.twitch.tv/jdrf to view the full schedule and tune in starting at 10:00 a.m. PDT / 1:00 p.m. EDT on June 27.

With COVID-19 restrictions shutting down most avenues for in-person fundraising, charity livestreams are helping to fill the void. Twitch (http://www.twitch.tv) is a video livestreaming service with an average of 17.5M daily viewers. Although it started out as a platform for streaming video games, the site has grown into a hub for a variety of live content including music, talk shows and podcasts, cooking streams, hobby and craft projects, fitness streams, and more. The Twitch community has raised more than $150M for charity since 2012.

JDRF first took to Twitch last November with a National Diabetes Awareness Month livestream event that raised about $37,000 over seven days. This event was unique in that almost all of the 60+ participating streamers either live with type 1 diabetes or have a friend or family connection to the condition.

“JDRF was the first charity I was introduced to after being diagnosed with T1D a little over seven years ago,” says ResurrectionFern, a singer/songwriter who was the top fundraiser in JDRF’s November event and is one of several content creators taking part in tomorrow’s Twitch marathon. “I remember walking in a 5k event with them a few months after being diagnosed and feeling that companionship and hope for the first time. Now, every time I fundraise for them, I feel the same thing. I’m so glad I’m able to use my talents and platform to further JDRF’s vision: a world without type 1 diabetes.”

Tomorrow’s event sets the stage for Game Over, T1D!, a livestream fundraising campaign that kicks off on July 1 and will run through 2021. JDRF is seeking people impacted by T1D to raise money, share their experiences, and help spread the word about JDRF’s mission to fund research into new treatments and potential cures for type 1 diabetes. People who want to take part can sign up here: http://www.jdrf.org/stream

To learn more about JDRF’s Game Over, T1D! campaign and the charity’s JDRF Game2Give initiative, please visit http://www.jdrf.org/gaming.

About JDRF

JDRF’s mission is to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat T1D and its complications. To accomplish this, JDRF has invested more than $2.2 billion in research funding since our inception. We are an organization built on a grassroots model of people connecting in their local communities, collaborating regionally for efficiency and broader fundraising impact, and uniting on a national stage to pool resources, passion, and energy. We collaborate with academic institutions, policymakers, and corporate and industry partners to develop and deliver a pipeline of innovative therapies to people living with T1D. Our staff and volunteers throughout the United States and our six international affiliates are dedicated to advocacy, community engagement and our vision of a world without T1D. For more information, please visit jdrf.org or follow us on Twitter: @JDRF

About JDRF Game2Give

Spearheaded by JDRF’s Greater Bay Area chapter, JDRF Game2Give is an initiative that harnesses the fundraising potential of the multibillion-dollar video game industry. JDRF Game2Give brings together all types of people with T1D who work and play with video games, mobilizing this community to raise money and awareness for diabetes research. Our initial Twitch and Humble Bundle fundraisers in November 2019 raised more than $500k for T1D research. Visit jdrf.org/gaming to learn more or jdrf.org/stream to join our livestream fundraising team and get news about upcoming events.