Extra Life, the popular gaming charity focused around efforts to fund children's hospitals and improve the lives and care of their young patients, was out on the floor at E3 this year.
For the uninitiated, Extra Life is a charity focused around using the power of video games and the gaming community to support children's hospitals all over the United States, in partnership with the Children's Miracle Network.
Extra Life has raised millions of dollars powered by the effort of streamers, gaming sites, and individual players raising money both generally and for their local hospitals. TechRaptor participated last year in their November Game Day with our 24 hour streaming event, along with hundreds of other teams and individuals.
At E3 this year, we got to meet with one of those players: Joe Tillery, a 15-year-old patient who raised $1,000 last year for his hospital in Kansas. Joe was very passionate as he talked about Extra Life and the work being done by gamers like him, and how much it helps the hospitals and the kids.
While the goal of Extra Life is to get hospitals the funding they need for equipment, procedures, or to simply keep the hospital going, there is an underlying philosophy of using video games themselves to help kids as well.
Joe participated in a charity stream with other kids from his hospital, staying up in late hours of the night playing games and finding strategies to stay awake (if you've ever done a charity marathon, you know that struggle all too well).
Video games for many kids have become a tool for coping with surgeries, changes, and day to day life, in ways similar to art and music.
Guilds are a newer section of Extra Life, which can be started in a players city, holding in-person meetings and planning events to help raise money for the charity.
While in the past most team streams were held by pre-established organizations or strictly by communicating from other parts of the country, the Guild system may enable gamers to better connect locally and thus hold even more charity events more efficiently.
Game Day this year is November 5th, but you can donate to Extra Life any time you want. Donations help hospitals in the United States, and now in Canada. You'll be able to connect to donate to your local Children's Miracle Network hospital there.
Teacher's aid by day. Gamer by night. And by day, because I play my DS on my lunch break. Ask me about how bad my aim is.
