It’s hard to believe that this Saturday will be the culmination of almost a eight months worth of work. The funny thing is, all things considered I feel like things still could have been better. First let me introduce you to what I’m talking about.

At the tail end of February, I wrote an article titled, “From couch to cash: Trying to redefine the gamer stereotype.” It was basically a response to a comment I had read in the digital version of The Boston Herald. The article was about PAX East making it’s way into Boston for 2014. A user by the name of AlfredNobel had made the comment, “Must be a great event if it motivated all these people to get up off the couch.” I don’t know what it was, but something inside me really reacted to the comment and motivated me to do something. That something was to pledge to commit to a charity – either Child’s Play or Extra Life.

I remember that the store had recently hosted an event for Child’s Play where they raised almost $500 for the fund. I thought it was great, but I had decided to go with Extra Life. One of the big reasons I chose Extra Life was because I really liked the idea of a worldwide celebration. Although, they make it very clear that you don’t have to hold your event on that day. Still, having seen many streams on Twitch last year, I know a lot of people make the effort to hold their events on that day. It was then that I decided, “This, I can do.”

For those of you who don’t know, Extra Life was originally established by a group of video gamers known as the Sarcastic Gaming Community to honor the life of a young girl by the name of Victoria Enmon. Sadly, she lost her battle against Cancer in 2008. However, Extra Life has continued to honor her and many other kids who are struggling with other ailments and having to deal with extended stays at hospitals by helping raise money every year for them. In 2008 and 2009, Extra Life raised a combined $302,000. Just last year, Extra Life raised $4 million.

The Big Event

This Saturday will be what we’ve been leading up to since the Extra Life commitment began in Feburary. Some groups have broken up the celebration into different hour to two-hour long fundraisers. I felt like being ambitious for the first year and wanted to do the whole 24-hours in one shot. I am going to do my best to be awake the entire time, but I have to admit, part of me will probably fall asleep for a couple of hours. In fact, a lot of the “tips and tricks” I’ve been reading in the Extra Life forums have said to never attempt to be awake for the entire 24-hour duration. I’m inclined to agree with them. This is for charity and I’d like to be able to physically do this next year. Also, I’m sure we’ll manage to find a way to have fun with my and my sleeping “habits.”

I bet you’re wondering what can you expect if you show up to the event. First of all the event starts at 12:00 AM October 25th. So if you’re either the Abington or Plainville store on Friday, either for FNM or just hanging out, when the clock strike midnight, the Extra Life event will have started. At 1:00 AM both stores will hold a giant Werewolf party game. I haven’t played this in a long time, but Derek was extremely excited to do it.

Throughout most of the day we’ll also be hosting $10 mini-master “Magic: The Gathering” tournaments. If you like opening packs, this is the event for you. I’m also sure that there will be plenty of people around for fill-and-fire drafts for Khans of Tarkir.

If you’re not into Magic, have no fear! Remember, Extra Life started out as a fundraiser that seemed to be exclusive to video gamers. However, over the years, and thanks to the growing popularity of board games, it has evolved into something more. That’s why you can expect plenty of board games to be available. You should also bring your own board games. Also, don’t worry if your game isn’t one of those fancy European board games – Monopoly is always welcomed.

My hope is to use this time to possibly learn how to play one of the major miniature games such as Warmachine or Warhammer 40K. I’m just looking for the basics!

At 6:00 PM, both stores will host a special Dungeons and Dragons charity event. I’m not sure if I am allowed to disclose any details of the event here, but I can say that Sam will be hosting the event in Plainville and Derek will be hosting the event in Abington. These are two very creative and experienced minds, and if you’ve ever wanted the chance to play with either one of these guys at the wheel, this is your chance! I would take full advantage of it.

Raffles galore!

Of course, what kind of charity event would it be if we didn’t have special items to raffle away. Scheduled for 10:00 PM, I’ll be giving away some amazing items that have been donated to the event in hopes to raise money for the kids of Extra Life. We’ll have some amazing artwork from Alley Livingston and Amanda Pegg-Wheat. Ken Briscoe has also, graciously, donated a whole box of Khans of Tarkir. This is one of the hottest “Magic: The Gathering” products right now and each box holds amazing value. Lastly, Wyrmwood Gaming has been awesome enough to donate a phenomenal package for the event. One lucky raffle winner will get a Commander-sized Deck Box. Check out the sample photo below.

One other raffle winner will get the following: 1x Dice Tray, 1x Dice Vault, 1x TBA. Check out the sample photo of the tray below. As for the TBA, I’ll announce it the day of the event. So make sure you’re following Battleground Games & Hobbies on all of their social media – Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Instagram.

Hope to see you there

This has been a lot of fun to take on all year long. I’ve had my fair share of ups and downs. There are definitely points where I know I can improve upon. For the most part, I’m proud of what I have accomplished. I set, what I think, was a high goal for myself which was $1000. You have to remember, this is my first year and I’m did most of this by myself. At this point, I’ve raised $525, which is 53% of my goal. My personal goal was to hit $1000 before the event, but I’m happy with what I have so far.

Of course, if you’d like to help me out then click the banners at the top and bottom of this article and donate today. There are still two days left until the big event.

For now, I want to say a big thanks to Battleground Games & Hobbies because without them, there would be no big event. I’d also like to thank those who have donated items to be raffled off. I am full of emotion and cannot express enough gratitude towards your kind gesture. To those of you who have donated thus far, I am grateful for the donation that has come out of your pocket. Times just are not what they used to be, so for you to donate something that you have worked hard for means a lot to me and I’m sure means a lot to the kids you are helping out.

I’m sure I’ll be giving more thanks at the end of the night, Saturday. However, one last thing, Extra Life allows you to assemble teams. Maybe next year I’ll assemble the Battleground Games & Hobbies team. If you’re interested, let me know in the comments below.

About the author

Simeon is now the Community Manager for Battleground Games & Hobbies. If you have any questions or inquiries, then you can reach him at Sims@battlegroundgames.com. He is also an avid gamer who loves to play board games and video games. He graduated college with a degree in Political Science, and now serves the public by writing about games. You can check that out here. Don’t forget to “like” him on Facebook as well. It’ll update you on all of his newest content. Best of all, you can follow Simeon on Twitter (@SimeonCortezano) for some real time hilarity. Thanks for reading!

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