The Extra Life event went wonderfully and was a great experience for me. I'm already looking forward to next year!
Although our team didn't quite hit the ignorant and ridiculous goal I set for us, I'm very proud of what everyone accomplished. With support from people like you I was able to reach 150% of my personal fundraising goal and our team has raised a total of $590 so far.
I say "so far" because although the Extra Life "Game Day" event is over, our team is still able to accept donations toward our goal. Our page should remain active until the end of the year, so if you haven't donated yet, please consider supporting our team efforts. (In fact, some new team members joined in the 11th hour before Game Day who are only just BEGINNING their fundraising efforts!)
I had a great time for almost my entire 24-hour run (the last hour or so was pretty rough). I rediscovered my love of Skyrim (which I'm now back into playing again, 320+ hours and counting), as well as my enjoyment of Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2. I shared my home-brewed Justice League RPG with viewers (made on the PS1 RPG Maker) and failed miserably in my attempt to storm a fortress in Icewind Dale 2.
I also discovered plenty of new games throughout the marathon:
I tried out a number of action games I've normally stayed away from (since I'm terrible at action games), but was surprised at how forgiving this new breed of action games is. Borderlands and Deus Ex: Human Revolution both proved much more enjoyable and approachable than I thought they would be.
I tried to use the survival horror genre to keep me awake in the late hours. The free Silent Hills Demo, "P.T.", proved extremely freaky, though ultimately too puzzling to advance through. The opposite seemed true of The Evil Within and Alien: Isolation, which both seemed unfrightening and, frankly, boring. (Though my fatigue may have been a factor there.)
The real takeaway star among the new games for me was "Bioshock", which I wasted little time in purchasing after the marathon was over. With plenty of safety nets to help me avoid frustration, yet atmosphere and mystery that keeps me on the edge of my seat, this game is clearly one I want to experience more of in the weeks to come.
However I think the best thing that may have come out of the weekend was the participation of this community. Each person who watched the stream or joined the chat encouraged me to keep going and helped keep my energy up. Each person who donated and each member of the CGC team looked outside of their comfort zone and became willing to give or do, on behalf of others, what was uncomfortable or inconvenient.
There are a growing number of places online for Christian Geeks to find understanding, sympathy and a safe haven from a judgmental world. But the vision for Christian Geek Central is to do even more beyond that, and send Christian Geeks back out into a world that doesn't understand them, to serve others and show them more of Christ. And that's what I saw this community doing through this event.
I'm so encouraged and excited by it that I'd like to announce a second event coming in the spring of 2015 that will partner Christian Geek Central with Compassion International. Compassion is a fantastic charity that rescues children from poverty, gives them an education to equip them to improve their communities, and also teaches them about Jesus and his amazing love for them.
I'll have more details in the future about what that partnership will look like, but for now I'll just say it will be another fun, geeky way that each of us can do some tangible good for others on behalf of Christ.
Thank you all, so much, for your support and involvement with our Extra Life efforts! I look forward to seeing what Jesus will do through this community next!
-Paeter Frandsen
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