Dogecoin may have started off as a bit of a lark, but it's actually starting to gain value — and become the cryptocurrency of choice for some surprising fundraising activities. Last month, the Reddit Dogecoin community banded together to try and help the Jamaican bobsled team reach the Sochi winter Olympics, and now the same community is getting involved in a charity to benefit the currency's namesake. The "Doge4Kids" campaign is attempting to raise money that'll be donated to 4 Paws For Ability, an organization focused on providing service animals to kids around the world. These service dogs are bred to help children with conditions like autism, Down's syndrome, diabetes, mobility issues, as well as a number of other conditions

The Dogecoin community is looking to raise the equivalent of $30,000 to donate to 4 Paws For Ability. This would be enough to fund the raising and training of two litters of service puppies who would be paired off with children as they grew up; it would also cover the expense of placing two adult service dogs with two families in need. It's a great bit of charity, and one that's particularly in keeping with the spirit of Dogecoin's namesake.

For those of us who might want to donate to the cause but don't have a stash of Dogecoin, the Doge4Kids team has partnered with crowdfunding operation Crowdtilt — you can contribute to the cause with your credit card here. So far, however, the vast majority of donations appear to be coming in Dogecoin — the team has already rasied over 7.9 million of the 20 million Dogecoin it wants to raise by the end of February.