DSU Gives Extra Life

This weekend, Einstein Bagels was host to DSU students working together to raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network in Sioux Falls. The way they raised their money was not the standard way however, as they raised this money through a 24 hour game streaming event called Extra Life. The Gaming Club, with help from the Zimmermann Hall Council, participated in the national event where participants streamed the video games they were playing across the internet. As they streamed the games, they also posted on social media for links where friends, family and strangers could donate money towards the Children’s Miracle Network. Many participants created stretch goals, in which they would do something hilarious, crazy or strange if enough money was raised. Several DSU students had stretch goals, ranging from taking pictures while wearing a dress to having their beards shaved off for the first time in years.

The event started at 8 AM on Saturday, and continued for 24 hours until Sunday morning. Many students were there from start to finish, and even a few who were not there at the beginning stayed long enough to make it so they were there for 24 hours. Along with the streaming, several other students came to watch, or play board games and card games. It wasn’t just students who came, but also alumni that lived in the area and wanted to enjoy the gaming experience. Several participants expressed how pleased they were with the timing of the event. Zack Beermann, an officer in gaming club, commented while playing Viva Pinata that, “this is a great time to have something positive happen when in the gaming industry there’s been a lot of negativity about gaming right now”.  Professor Glen Berman, who was also in attendance, stated that he felt Extra Life gets an under used market involved in charity. He was pleased to see how well even a small group such as the DSU gaming club could do in helping the national event.

Extra Life raised over $5.5 million in 24 hours, with Dakota State Gaming Club contributing over $2,500 towards this total.

Photo Credit: www.extra-life.org