Ed Asner Family Center partners with Funko for new 'Up' inspired character, 'Pop with a Purpose'

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- "Up" is one of Disney's most popular movies. We all had a soft spot for the animated Carl Fredricksen, even though he was a bit grumpy.

The character voiced by actor Ed Asner is now a Funko Pop, and a portion of the sales of this collectible figure will benefit the Ed Asner Family Center, which helps the autism community.

Jen Ryan is the director of retail stores at Funko. "We are announcing a drop of our new Pop with a purpose. Carl, from 'Up!.' A portion of the proceeds from the pop will go directly to the Ed Asner Adult Center and Family Center."

Asner's son, Matt and daughter-in-law Navah, are behind the program.

"The Ed Asner Family Center was created by Matt and me. We have six children, three autistic," said Navah. "And we really felt like there was something missing in the special needs community that supported the entirety of the family, not just the special needs individual. We're here for today celebrating our job training program called The Academy".

"This group of wonderful adults has been working with us here at Funko," said Ryan. "And we have had the best time with them. They get a chance to really engage with people and talk about the product. They also learn cash handling skills."

"The special needs community, the autistic community has an 85% unemployment rate which is unheard of. So we want to change that dynamic," said Matt. "We want the Ed Asner Family Center to be a part of that. If you ask people who have employed autistic people, they will all tell you that they are the best employees. I mean, it's a positive."

Ryan agrees. "It's huge to let everybody understand that everybody in this world has differences and we need to accept each other how they are and just grow together and be a more united world."