Piggie Bear® in Our Homes

Piggie Bear® in Our Communities

100 Women Who Care

100 Women Who Care felt the power of Piggie Bear’s message and selected ELF as the recipient of a grant to donate Piggie Bear books to CHOC Children’s Hospital.

Capistrano USD

The Library Technicians at Capistrano USD each received a copy of “The Power of Piggie Bear” to share with their young students.

Casa Hogar

Many of the children at Casa Hogar live in poverty. “The Power of Piggie Bear”, available in Spanish, teaches them that they are amazing just the way they are, and to give themselves a big hug on days when they don’t feel so great.

Piggie Bear in Mexico

Mara James and Advisory Board member Adrienne Matros visit Casa Hogar in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico to introduce them to Piggie Bear’s powerful messages.

CHOC Childrens

Mara and Piggie Bear spread the joy to children at CHOC Children’ Hospital, who are especially vulnerable to emotional turmoil.

Fairmont School

Piggy Bear shared her message of inclusion, diversity, and affirmation with the children at Fairmont Elementary School.

High Five for Mental Health​

A mascot sized Piggie Bear made a special appearance at the High Five event at Dana Hills High School in April 2018.

Project Hope Alliance

Mara, Piggie Bear and the ELF team bring some love and laughter to homeless children at the Project Hope Alliance event in Aug 2018.

Boys and Girls Love Piggie Bear

Horace Mann Elementary School in Anaheim has embraced the teachings of Piggie Bear and invited ELF to present the book to their Kindergarten and Grade 1 classes.

Lydia Mclaughlin

Lydia McLaughlin, one of the Real Housewives of the OC, is mom to three young boys and enjoys reading PB to them.

Poppy Jamie

Poppy Jamie is a British entrepreneur and TV presenter who launched Happy Not Perfect, an app focused on improving mental health and positive wellbeing.

Thank you, TSO!

A big thank you to Tennis Serves Others for their grant which enabled ELF to hand out books to at risk foster children at the Kids’ Carnival organized by the Illumination Foundation.

Who is Piggie Bear®?

Piggie Bear is the main character of “The Power of Piggie Bear”, a children’s book written by ELF founder, Mara James. Piggie Bear is part bear, part pig and she helps children develop their Emotional Intelligence (EQ). There are five main teachings that Piggie Bear children to express their emotions and feel empowered. Piggie Bear teaches children the following five tools:
  1. Piggie Bear teaches how to identify emotions
  2. Piggie Bear teaches self-calming skills
  3. Piggie Bear teaches empowering words
  4. Piggie Bear teaches self-love
  5. Piggie Bear teaches self-acceptance

The Piggie Bear® Book

ELF donates copies of “The Power of Piggie Bear” to children’s hospitals, foster children and children that have been abused. The book is currently available in English and Spanish. A Power of Piggie Bear curriculum for Kindergarten is coming soon!
​
ELF aims to raise awareness of mental health challenges and be part of the solution to empower children everywhere. By spreading Piggie’s Bear’s powerful lessons, we can help boost self esteem and help children manage their emotions in a fun and loving way.

The Piggie Bear® Plush

We have partnered with Build-A-Bear to create the Piggie Bear stuffed animal. Soft and cuddly, the stuffed animal will provide comfort to any child needing a little TLC. The plush is designed to complement Piggie Bear’s teachings from the book and reinforce positive emotional skills. Like the book, Piggie Bear will be available to purchase or donate from our website shortly!

​

Testimonials
​Piggie Bear is an adorable character that helps teach young children that we are all unique. Piggie Bear identifies and encourages acceptance of a range of emotions as well as demonstrates ways to breathe and express those emotions. Every child should have a Piggie Bear to love.
​
Adrienne Matros, Psy.D.
​
This book conveys the message that by relaxing and doing some special breathing and self hugs, negative feelings begin to melt away, leaving room for a positive self image. The Power of Piggie Bear is a gift for those who want to help children learn how to get through challenging times.
​
Kimberly G
Mom and Verified Amazon Purchaser
This morning when I dropped my 6 year old son off at school, he said, mom if I feel sad today at school, I will give myself a big Piggie Bear hug. I really loved the book!! Thank you so much!!
​
L.L.
Parent

​
It can often be a challenge for children to find the right words to express what is going on inside. Hearing Piggie Bear express these feelings makes it relatable. The Power of Piggie Bear is a wonderful, heartfelt approach to giving children tools for dealing with their feelings and developing self-acceptance.
​
Debbie Hutchinson
Psy.D., MFT
Mara James has taken a key principle of developmental psychology and turned it into an easily digestible and entertaining story for young children. Piggie Bear provides a model for young children to begin naming and coping with difficult emotions, central ingredients of mental health. Until they learn to show themselves self-compassion, Piggie Bear can do it for them.
​
Jessica Borelli, Ph.D
Associate Professor, UC Irvine
This is such a cute and meaningful book. If we can get books like this in children’s hands at a younger age, it can help them deal with their feelings in their later years.

Lea Romo
Director of Development, Child Abuse Prevention Center



​