Botkins Charity Project

A Swiss maker has completed the construction of the little robot "Stan" for her colleague and Botkins team member who has severe ME. 

She financed the project, ordered the materials and built it herself. 

Botkins is delighted with the build 🙌🏼👏🏼

On May 11, 2024, the national #MillionsMissing rally took place on Bern's Bundesplatz.

Why was that important?

It was about visibility and awareness. It was about representing the millions of people who suffer from ME and CFS and have disappeared from public life.

Botkins was on site with robot Walter Jakob and enabled bedridden sufferers to participate via telepresence.

#MillionsMissing drew attention to the urgent need for research and called for recognition and care for ME patients.

Let's unite to make a change!

#MillionsMissing2024 #MEAwareness #BotkinsCharity #vigibot #StopRestPace #DIY #robotics #raspberrypi #disability #empowerment #pov #fyp #MEcfs #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis

On the occasion of ME Awareness Day 2024:

For the first time, a funeral procession took place in Switzerland on April 6, 2024. What does this have to do with ME Awareness Day?

Then, as now, it was about education and visibility. It's about preparing the ground for the recognition of this disease that makes people disappear.

Botkins was on site with robot Walter Jakob and enabled bedridden sufferers to be there live via telepresence.

It is a mourning process because ME means loss: of health, freedom of movement, independence. And, due to a lack of care, often also basic human rights and dignity. Or even of life.

ME is a physical multi-system disease for which there is no cure and which leads to a high degree of physical disability.

Although ME has been classified as a neurological disease by the WHO since 1969, it is still associated with great stigma today.

Doctors do not recognize it.

Experts do not recognize it.

Society does not see it.

Accordingly, those affected lack everything.

There are no care structures that would do justice to this severe neuroimmunological disease. Neither medically, socially nor financially.

The most severely affected people in particular fall through the cracks of the system and are therefore threatened in their existence.

The silent mourning procession through Zurich was followed by a demonstration and speeches that drew attention to the desolate situation of those affected in Switzerland and their demands:

Care! Research!

Still utopia today. Let's change that!

#MEAwarenessDay2024 #TeachMETreatME #millionsmissing #mourning #lyingdemo #botkinscharity #vigibot #StopRestPace #DIY #robotics #raspberrypi #disability #empowerment #pov #fyp #MEcfs #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis

Translated with DeepL.com

The Botkins Charity Project was founded by D. Lauber, who is bedridden with severe M.E. He built robots to see the world and to use them as a surrogate to visit his family. And so it began.  

The Botkins Charity Project is all about providing bedridden patients who suffer from M.E. or Long Covid with a tool to take part in social life again. Something that these patients dearly miss.  

Botkins is thankful towards @vigibot, whose design plans and software Botkins can use. These DIY robots function as an extension of the patients themselves, enabling them to visit family and friends and to attend birthdays, holidays, weddings and other gatherings.   

Not only can patients attend such occasions passively, but also actively interact in real-time if they have the strength to do so.   

The possibilities the Botkins open up can have a significant positive impact in regards to quality of life for the severely ill and physically disabled patients.   

This is empowerment put into practice.  

This is our vision and our mission. We would love to see that vision grow. Are you in?  

We need reinforcement for our Makers-Team. Also, since we are a donation-based charity, we welcome every financial contribution, however big or small 🤍   

Find out how you can support us here: https://botkins.ch  (link in bio)  We are looking for volunteers as Social Media Editors, Communicators, for fundraising and PR as well as for administrative tasks.  Get in touch: https://www.benevol-jobs.ch/de/einsatz/hilfe-der-kommunikation   

Last but not least - visibility is key. This is where each and every one of you can make a huge difference: like, share, subscribe, comment 🤍    Let's make this happen!  

Love, The Botkins Charity Team    #millionsmissing #botkinscharity #vigibot #StopRestPace #DIY #robotics #raspberrypi #disability #empowerment #pov #fyp #MEcfs #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis

The Swiss Muscle Society has published an article on myalgic encephalomyelitis, in the magazine "info" "04.2023". Thanks also to SGME.ch for featuring Botkins Charity Project and Dejan Lauber. The Article is in German only. 

The pages about Botkins and Dejan attached. The entire magazine is also freely available on their website. https://www.muskelgesellschaft.ch/magazin-info/

Robot No.1 «Lucky», the first robot financed by donations has been sent to a patient in Germany! 🥳🥳

The holidays are upon us and we are also celebrating the launch of our website! https://botkins.ch/feiern-wir/ 

Botkins Charity Project wishes everyone good luck for the coming year and hopes you enjoy the newly launched website, created entirely by volunteers.

Share it widely in your circles, because not everyone knows about our association yet and we still want to grow a lot!

Here's to a happy new year! Kind regards, your Botkins Charity Project

Robot No. 1 called «Lucky», absolving final testing.

Botkins Charity Project makes small robots accessible for #MECFS & #LongCovid patients.

Thanks to your donations, Botkins is taking care of a total of 8 robots in various stages of realization! 🥳  Materials for No. 3, 4, 5 is on the way. Currently setting up an order for No. 6, 7, 8.