Hello!

My name is Andrew Belliveau and I am the creator of the Gastroparesis Pie Face Challenge. To help better understand the origins, of the GP Pie Face Challenge you first need to hear a bit about myself. 

In September 2008 at the age of 11, I came down with what I thought was a routine stomach bug. Instead of getting better, my symptoms continued to worsen. In January 2009, I was officially diagnosed with gastroparesis.

Over the next four years, I lived with constant nausea and vomiting—often 10 to 15 times a day. As you can imagine, my quality of life was severely impacted. Despite the challenges, my family encouraged me to keep moving forward. With their support, I continued attending school and playing sports. While it wasn't easy, maintaining a sense of normalcy helped me cope with the realities of living with gastroparesis.

In April 2012, I was fortunate to receive a gastric stimulator. The treatment significantly improved my condition, and my symptoms have remained under control ever since. Knowing how fortunate I was to respond so well to the stimulator, I felt compelled to help others facing even greater challenges than my own.

Inspired by both the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and Hasbro's Pie Face game, I launched the GP Pie Face Challenge in 2016. At first, I thought it would become the next internet sensation—but I was sadly mistaken. Determined to spread awareness, I reached out on Twitter (now X) to members of my beloved Boston Red Sox for help getting the challenge off the ground.

A few weeks later, I received a response from David Price, who was pitching for the Red Sox at the time. He gladly accepted the challenge and passed it along to several teammates in 2017. From there, the challenge began to spread.

Thanks to the incredible support of fellow GP warriors, professional athletes, celebrities, and advocates over the years, the GP Pie Face Challenge has raised more than $20,000 for G-PACT. Even more rewarding has been seeing awareness of gastroparesis spread through local communities, across the country, and around the world.

Who knew a kid, a dream, and a can of whipped cream could accomplish so much?

Let's keep smashing GP—one pie at a time.

 

Check out an ESPN segment about my story below!