Jimothy the Raccoon Has Raised $58,000 And Got His Own Google Easter Egg
Jimothy is a wild raccoon from Seattle's Ballard neighborhood with short spine syndrome, a rare congenital condition that gives him an unusually round, compact body, and in the span of about ten days he became one of the most beloved internet sensations in recent memory, earned an honorary degree from the University of Washington, received recognition from the Seattle City Council, appeared as a cameo in the Roku City screensaver, was immortalized in a Dungeons and Dragons stat block, and had Google build him his own search Easter egg. If you search his name right now, a small animated Jimothy will scamper across your screen. The animation has been triggered more than five million times. What started when Seattle resident Kiana Hall posted a short Instagram video of him running through her backyard has grown into something that almost nobody who covers viral moments has seen happen this fast or this thoroughly. The Ballard neighborhood threw a celebration called Jimothy Summer. The Seattle Mariners brought a Jimothy mascot into their beloved Salmon Run race at T-Mobile Park. He won. The team won three straight games afterward.
And through all of it, Jimothy has been raising money. Seattle artist Ryan Henry Ward auctioned a painting of Jimothy for $6,543.21, donated the full amount to Ballard Food Bank, and then Amazon matched it. Then Starbucks pledged to match. Then T-Mobile, Alaska Airlines, Brooks Running, Stanley, Microsoft, and the Seattle Mariners all followed. As of July 24, 2026, Ballard Food Bank confirmed it had received pledges totaling over $58,000, with more individual donations arriving separately from people who said they knew they would not win the auction but wanted to give what they could. Gypsy Walukones, the senior communications manager for Ballard Food Bank, said the organization serves over 10,500 households each month and the need in the community continues to grow rapidly, and that with these gifts they can share nutritious groceries, hygiene supplies, pet food, freshly prepared meals through their Kindness Cafe, and financial assistance for rent and utilities to help keep neighbors in their homes. She said Ballard Food Bank is, above all, about human and animal connections, and that they are deeply grateful for the wave of giving that a round raccoon from Ballard somehow made happen.
Source:https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/jimothy-raccoon-donation-brands
