Postcrossing Blog

Every single day Postcrossing lights up thousands of smiles across the world, literally making it a happier place. We are very proud of that and so should you! And today, Postcrossing brings to you an initiative that allows you to create even more smiles through your postcards. Interested? Read on.

On the 10th of May it’s International World Lupus Day, which has the goal of bringing more awareness over this chronic disease that affects over 5 million people worldwide. If you don’t know what Lupus is, here’s a quick summary:

Lupus is a chronic, autoimmune disease that can damage any part of the body (skin, joints, and/or organs inside the body). Chronic means that the signs and symptoms tend to last longer than six weeks and often for many years. In lupus, something goes wrong with your immune system, which is the part of the body that fights off viruses, bacteria, and germs (“foreign invaders, ” like the flu). Normally our immune system produces proteins called antibodies that protect the body from these invaders. Autoimmune means your immune system cannot tell the difference between these foreign invaders and your body’s healthy tissues (“auto” means “self”) and creates autoantibodies that attack and destroy healthy tissue. These autoantibodies cause inflammation, pain, and damage in various parts of the body.

Lupus occurs nine times more often in women than in men, especially between the ages of 15 and 50, but it can also affect men, children, and teenagers develop it too. To learn more about Lupus, check Wikipedia or the Lupus Foundation of America.

So, how is this related with postcards? The German Lupus Association and Postcrossing have joined efforts around the World Lupus Day, and you can participate too! We call it LupusCrossing – Butterflies are crossing the world and all you have to do is to send a butterfly postcard (butterflies are the Lupus symbol) to the address below to express your support towards Lupus patients on this special day. The goal is to bring worldwide awareness to this problem while at the same time bring smiles to those affected by the disease. You can write on the postcard whatever you want, and you can ask questions about Lupus too.

All received postcards will reach the hands of Lupus patients. In return, the German Lupus Association will send thank you postcards to 3 randomly chosen Postcrossers of each country they receive postcards from so don’t forget to write your address on the card! A photo of the postcards received will appear on their website. Moreover, the German Lupus Association plans to design a roll-up display out of these cards that will be shown throughout the 80 regional groups.

Ready to spark some smiles? Then grab a postcard with a butterfly and send it to:

And don’t forget to check the German Lupus Association website for the progress.

Happy LupusCrossing!