81-year-old becomes Minecraft streamer to raise funds for grandson’s cancer treatment

Meet “GrammaCrackers”, the 81-year-old who is winning followers and hearts online after starting a YouTube channel, on which she is seen playing the popular Minecraft game, to help pay for her grandson’s cancer treatment.

Ms Sue Jacquot, who is based in Arizona, US, has more than 361,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel, GrammaCrackers – named after Graham Crackers, her favourite snack.

She never intended to be a gamer, but learnt to play the brick-building sandbox game Minecraft last summer in a bid to spend more time with her grandchildren.

“At first, it was kind of scary, you know, because you’re stepping into a little world that’s different from your own,” she told Arizona news outlet 12 News.

But, like her grandchildren, she quickly found herself hooked on the game.

“I was playing all night, you know, because I didn’t have a mum to tell me to go to bed,” she quipped.

Her debut video stream, uploaded in October 2025, chalked up over half a million views.

Noticing the success of her first video, Ms Jacquot struck upon the idea of gaming for the good of her family.

She began adding a note and link to each of her videos, which led to a GoFundMe page to raise funds for her 17-year-old grandson Jack’s cancer treatment. Jack was diagnosed with sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that affects the bones and connective tissues, in 2024.

At the time of writing, the fund-raiser, started by Jack’s older brother Austin, had raised over US$47,500 (S$61,000).

Ms Jacquot, who has won fans from all over the world, including in South Africa and South Korea, has also received support via Super Thanks, a feature that lets content creators earn revenue from viewers who want to show their appreciation.

“It was surreal,” Austin told 12 News. “There were donations from a dollar all the way up to US$5,000.” He added that the family was “mind-blown” at how quickly his grandmother was able to adapt to the Minecraft game and online streaming.

The family said the octogenarian is on track to earn about US$2,000 from her YouTube channel.

After months of treatment, Jack is now in remission and doing better than ever. But his grandmother’s campaign continues.

“It’s like a mortgage on a small house by the time you finish the chemo,” Ms Jacquot said, explaining that she expects her grandson’s medical bills to continue piling up even after his chemotherapy treatment.

While the elderly streamer has caught the attention of online users the world over, the biggest surprise, Ms Jacquot said, has been the kindness shown by strangers towards her family.

“It’s the most incredible thing,” she said.