Sunday, October 23, 2022, The well-known Minecraft SMP (Survival Multiplayer) Server Hermitcraft held its first-ever Charity live stream to raise funds for the support of Gamers Outreach. Gamers Outreach is a charity that empowers hospitalized families through play. They build GO Karts (Gamers Outreach Karts), portable video game kiosks built specifically for hospitals. The event was organized by GoodTimesWithScar an American Minecraft YouTuber known for his Minecraft building tutorials and the Hermitcraft Youtube series. As a former pediatric patient with a neuromuscular disease Scar is particularly passionate about this charity.
The event involved the entire Hermitcraft servers with many of the hermits building mini-games to be played during the Livestream. Games involving TNT, Horse racing, Dunk Tanks, and more. The creative use of in-game items and functions to create games within the game Minecraft is well known by the audience of Hermitcraft fans and viewers. The stream was also joined by Zach Wigal the founder of Gamers Outreach who gave an overview of the charity and what it does with the money raised.
By there own words the Hermits planned and expected to only raise around $25,000 and to their surprise, that goal was met before the stream even got off the ground. The overwhelming emotion was telling when 24 minutes into the stream before the first minigame was even played they crossed $100,000 raised.
The organizer Scar was visibly emotional at the announcement of reaching that goal and the rest of the hermits also responded in awe at the outpouring of the community they have built around Hermitcraft.
By the time the stream had ended the Hermits had raised over $420,000 for this charity event which is a testament to the hard work, they have spent over the years building an audience and a community around their series through storytelling and shenanigans, and keeping us who watch the series entertained. And it is also a testament to the generosity of the viewers themselves who donated everything from a like and a share to $1 to $1000. And all this around a pixelated game made of blocks.
Sometimes we box generosity by the way we limit our creativity in serving others. What creative ways of loving our neighbours do we overlook?!
Have gamers in your church considered serving your community through participating in something like this? Perhaps even supporting Gamers Outreach?
Speak your mind...