72 Hours Remain Raises $1274.56 in 27 hours

As you tune into the charity event, you see someone playing a game for hours, while everyone else dances as a cartoon cat flies across the screen and a catchy song plays.  Even though this doesn't look like a normal fundraising event, the song and dance only happened because someone just donated over $50 to Child's Play - so there's a great reason to celebrate.

72 Hours Remain is a gaming marathon that plays video games for extended periods of time, encouraging people to donate to Child's Play Charity (a charity providing games, books and toys to patients of hospitals worldwide).  The first marathon in December 2009 lasted for 3 days straight, which led to their name, "72 Hours Remain".  After the success of the first event, another 72-hour event followed in August 2010.  Over the history of 72 Hours Remain, over $9,600 has been raised for Child's Play through their events.

"Another Quick-Draw round!" shouts Kelly O'Neill, Creative Director and co-founder.  For the most recent event, 72 Hours Remain played through "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask" to full completion.  "Majora's Mask" led to the name of the organization, so it was only a matter of time before an event occurred dedicated to the game.  To encourage viewers to donate, after collecting a mask in the game (of which there are 28 to collect), the first person to donate recieved an entry in a raffle to win a sculpture made by O'Neill herself.

After raising an impressive $1,500 in December 2009 during its first 72-hour event, it was clear they wanted to continue that success in supporting Child's Play Charity.  After the second marathon in August 2010, "72 Hours Remain" continued on, with a 12-hour Holiday marathon in 2010, and 72-hour event in June 2011.  The group recently finished their "Majora's Mask" mini-marathon on September 24th-25th, 2011.  Recorded video of all these events can be seen on their Ustream page (http://www.ustream.tv/channel/72-hours-remain ).

"We need more fan art!" says O'Neill, reminding viewers about the raffle prize for fan art, which was also created by O'Neill.  Every piece of fan art was posted to the site ( http://www.72hoursremain.com/pictures/fanart/ ), including everything from photo-manipulated fan art, to hand-drawn art, to art submitted by a 4-year old.  Fans and viewers are what help grow the group's outreach - all donations are given by people who tune in, so 72 Hours Remain makes sure to keep them entertained.  Over the years, 72 Hours Remain has managed to gather a group of loyal viewers, and the players are as excited to see the viewers as the viewers are to tune in.

As for the future of 72 Hours Remain, there's plenty to look forward to.  The group plans on several "mini-thons" a year, as well as the annual 72-hour event.  "Adding more events allows us to connect with our viewers more often, and the shorter events make it easier to do more,"  says Daniel Frandsen, Technical Director, as well as another co-founding player.  This season (from August 2011-July 2012) they hope to raise $7,200 for Child's Play Charity. Following their first event they're on track to meet and exceed that goal. 

The next event, "Dueling Banjos" will take place starting on January 14th at noon EST, where the group will be playing through "Banjo-Kazooie" and "Banjo-Tooie" for the Nintendo 64.  72 Hours Remain raises donations for Child's Play Charity all year long, so you can donate through our website at any time, not just during the event!  Tune in the new year and help support a great cause!  In the meantime, don't forget that you can still help spread the word, watch older videos, and support a great cause!

Original Press Release Link: http://www.prlog.org/11674116-72-hours-remain-raises-127456-in-27-hours.html


Child’s Play charity (www.childsplaycharity.org) is a game industry charity that started in 2003. Since then, they have received over 7 million dollars in donations of games, toys and books to children in hospitals worldwide. Child’s Play relies heavily on contributors, especially through gaming marathons. This is where the team from 72 Hours Remain hopes to make a difference and help patients in hospitals everywhere.

72 Hours Remain is a charity gaming organization that coordinates marathons throughout the year to raise money for Child's Play Charity. Child's Play is a charity providing games, books and toys to patients of children’s hospitals around the world.