A makeshift memorial took shape outside the Apple Store in Omaha on Wednesday night following Steve Jobs’ death. Photo from Miles Matthias on Twitter.
Amidst an outpouring of social media tributes to Steve Jobs last night in the immediate aftermath of the Apple co-founder’s death, one from the Silicon Prairie stood out.
QuickCal, which we reported on just yesterday, posted the following tweet:
Thanks to our sponsor
Through Oct. 14, all profits from downloads of QuickCal, which costs $2.99, will be donated to the Lustgarten Foundation, an organization that researches pancreatic cancer, the disease that took Jobs’ life.
Followers of QuickCal will recall this isn’t the first time Jim Boutcher (QuickCal’s Omaha-based lead and a self-professed “Apple zealot”) and his team have used sales of their app to rally behind a timely charitable cause. In March, when Japan was devastated by earthquake and tsunami, Boutcher and company made QuickCal available for free download, encouraging people to donate money to Japan relief efforts rather than spend it on the app. In four days, QuickCal was downloaded nearly 20,000 times.
In an email this morning, Boutcher explained his desire to do something after Jobs’ death. “Steve’s Apple enabled me to pursue my hobby, and develop QuickCal,” Boutcher said. “When the news broke yesterday, I knew we had to give back. It’s our way of saying ‘Thank you, Steve.’ “
Boutcher said the rest of the QuickCal team was unanimous in its support of the idea. For those who have already purchased QuickCal but are still interested in helping the cause, the QuickCal team encourages donations to the Lustgarten Foundation.
“Steve’s Apple enabled me to pursue my hobby, and develop QuickCal. When the news broke yesterday, I knew we had to give back. It’s our way of saying ‘Thank you, Steve.’ “
– Jim Boutcher
To me, it’s refreshing to see someone using the emotion and sentiment surrounding Jobs’ death as a catalyst for positive change. At the risk of sounding trite, Jobs’ death is reminder that cancer touches everyone, regardless of whether — in the parlance of Apple’s well-worn commercials — they’re a Mac or a PC.
Even Jobs, whose brilliance helped solve problems for so many, was ultimately defenseless in the face of an awful disease that, as of yet, has no solution. But, hopefully, with the help of efforts like this, others will stand a fighting chance.
