Update: Our trip itself is now funded thanks to the generous contributions of those listed below; any other contributions we receive will be used for hardware and games for console verification.
Hi, I'm dwangoAC, and I would be honored to again serve as the
presenter for TASVideos runs at
AGDQ 2015 with a goal during our runs of raising $25,000 for the
Prevent Cancer Foundation. Unfortunately, my wife (
asassyknitter) and I are currently unable to fund our trip due to a series of unfortunate events involving everything from extended family members ending up in the hospital to a senile cat destroying parts of our kitchen to a blown head gasket along with a host of other expenses. It is with a humble heart that I come asking for travel cost assistance.
I kept careful tabs on our expenses during our week-long AGDQ 2014 trip and I think it's worthwhile for me to be transparent about what our travel costs were, in part to help enlighten others who might be considering the trek themselves. My records show that we spent $176.19 on grocery purchases and dining out (free breakfast and occasional lunch brought in by PCF helped offset this cost). Airfare after tax was $899.60 (flying in right after New Year's always increases ticket prices). Hotel costs after tax for 7 nights at the Crowne Plaza in Dulles were $734.72. AGDQ related parking, fares, and tolls were only $18.40 (the free hotel shuttle helped).
AGDQ 2014 registration fees were $75 ea = $150. That brings our AGDQ 2014 total to $2,098.91, although there were other expenses I did not capture in that number such as donations we made to PCF while at the marathon and bus fares to and from Washington, DC proper for some sightseeing. Overall, I anticipate our costs for AGDQ 2015 will be around $2,000 (the hotel will be more expensive by $20 a day but hopefully we can get airfare a bit cheaper, and the registration may be cheaper this year).
I know that asking for $2,000 is, well, a lot, so I want to clarify a few things people have asked me about. First, any donations we receive will go to reducing the sacrifice we will have to make. If it came down to it, we would have to sell some games or a pinball machine we own to get the funds for the trip, and while that's not something I want to do they are assets we have that could be liquidated if necessary. Second, if you're torn between donating to the PCF and helping us get there, donate to the PCF instead; my hope with asking for donations is to use the assistance to help convince people outside of TASVideos to contribute to a cause greater than themselves and I encourage you to donate to the cause you feel most led to supporting. Finally, we will commit to tithe (give 10%) on any donations we receive and pass it on to places like the
EFF, PCF,
World Vision, or some other well-run charity. Yes, this means that we will have to come up with $200 out-of-pocket or from other sources to make up for the tithing but this is what we've always done and it's never turned out badly. If we somehow end up exceeding our donation goal we will donate the excess funds to the PCF during the marathon itself.
I feel the extra money spent to get asassyknitter there is more than worth it - for AGDQ 2014 she knitted some really awesome custom Triforce gauntlets and a Triforce beanie toward raffle prizes and it was a huge benefit having her support and presence on stream (although we made a point later to ignore the immature nonsense Twitch chat had to say about her :).
I want to thank everyone who has donated. I'll update this list as donations come in; please let me know if you would prefer to stay anonymous:
- Derakon generously donated an Amazon gift card
- Patashu made a much-appreciated PayPal donation
- Mothrayas has my thanks for a PayPal donation with an encouraging message
- Demon Lord has my appreciation for being the first to donate with Bitcoin
- AndyDick donated Bitcoin for a TASBot win!
- An anonymous donor made a truly staggering PayPal donation an order of magnitude above anything else!
- An anonymous Amazon gift card came in which made asassyknitter very pleased
- Qlex donated through PayPal - May your Tetris line come exactly when you need it to
- A generous, anonymous Bitcoin donation came in from someone known to be awesome - thanks!
- [your name here today as well if you want it to be! :)]
You too can help us out in a variety of ways: we gladly accept donations through Bitcoin at 1CknXDyb5jTG1Nw1hs437r6fnz7npBSEfA (consider getting a free
coinbase.com wallet!) or by sending things like Amazon gift cards to ac@acbit.net.
We can accept PayPal donations if that is your only method (I am not a fan of PayPal's $3%+ fees or their past abusive behavior, but beggars can't be choosers :). Anything that helps us offset our travel costs would be greatly appreciated, and if you make a generous contribution and are interested in exposure I'll gladly credit you or your business on stream. Please note that any donations toward offsetting our trip costs are completely separate from
donations to keep TASVideos running.
If you make a donation and there's something on
this games list you'd like to have, just say the word and I'll gift it to you (these are from the various Humble Bundle purchases I've made in the name of donating to the EFF). Thank you so much for your help!
