Sick Kids Save Point is the country’s biggest and most successful 24-hour charity gaming marathon. Launched in 2010 in Edinburgh, the event has managed to raise over £50,000 for the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh. In 2013 the event takes place on the weekend 11th-14th October, with hundreds of gamers from across the UK taking part.
Rockstar North, the developer behind the world’s most successful video game, has donated a four figure sum every year to The Sick Kids Friends Foundation, as well as prizes to fundraisers who are taking on the challenge of playing games for 24 hours to raise money for this vital local charity.
Earlier this year, Tom Freeman, the organiser behind SKSP was nominated for a Sick Kids award his efforts in putting the event together.
Tom told us:
I’m delighted that our local heroes have yet again come up with the goods when supporting a crucial local hospital, which treats kids from all over the country. We’ve had support from many of the numerous local games companies and some further afield, but Rockstar North have been consistent in their generosity. Many of Rockstar’s employees even take part!
Playing games for 24 hours is not easy. Just like a marathon runner has to fight through a pain barrier, participants in Sick Kids Save Point have to push past a realisation that sitting looking at a screen just isn’t fun anymore…
Also supporting this year’s Sick Kids Save Point marathon are Swedish company Paradox Interactive, NIS America, Finnish company Ludocraft and Scottish website Calm Down Tom, all of whom have donated prizes. The event also enjoys the support of the Scottish games industry through the Scottish Games Network.The Sick Kids Friends Foundation is a registered Scottish Charity that raises around £1.5 million every year to help children and families at the Edinburgh Sick Kids Hospital.
There’s still time to sign up for this year’s marathon and help raise money for sick children. The event is open to everybody. It’s free to join in and takes about 60 seconds to sign up. Participants sign up for a Just Giving page. You can even connect it to Facebook and make it faster, simpler and more social.
You can choose whatever game(s) you choose. There are prizes galore for participants, from SKSP t-shirts to exclusive Rockstar and GTA V goodies.You can help make life better for some very sick children – by indulging in your favourite hobby. It shows that gaming can be far more than the anti-social habit the tabloid press still believes it to be.
Go on, sign up now. We’d be very grateful.
