Actor Will Ferrell (of SNL, Anchorman, and Elf fame) has partnered with charities Cancer for College and Donate Games to raise money for children struggling with cancer, offering one lucky fan the chance at a Twitch-streamed gaming session with Ferrell himself.
Will Ferrell’s SuperMegaBlastMax Gamer Challenge aims to raise $375,000 through Indiegogo, with all proceeds going to the two charities. Everyone who donates will be entered for the chance to fly to San Francisco and play games with Ferrell in a one-time session broadcasted live on Twitch. Other rewards are available from partners Amazon, Microsoft, and Twitch, including Amazon gift cards, autographed controllers, t-shirts, and–most intriguingly–Will Ferrell’s SuperMegaUVBlastMax Gamer’s Sunscreen (SPF 30)
Cancer for College was founded in 1994 by two-time cancer survivor Craig Pollard to provide college scholarships for young men and women facing cancer. Ferrell was a college friend of Pollard’s, and has been involved with the charity since before his tenure on SNL.
Donate Games was founded in 2007 by Jim Carol and his son Taylor, who was diagnosed at 11 with terminal leukemia. Because video games were so instrumental in helping Taylor endure the isolation of his frequent hospital visits, the father and son decided to found a charity to help bring games to other children fighting similar battles. In an interview with IGN, Carol said that they are working with Twitch to do fundraisers like this once per month. Every month will feature a different celebrity gamer.
It has been a challenging month for the gaming community, with some of its most vocal denizens seemingly trying their hardest to present the hobby as an exclusive and inhospitable place for all but a select group of overly-pandered-to, young, white men. This is an encouraging departure from that discussion, and a reminder of the positive things that can come from our community.
Check out WillFerrellHatesCancer.org to donate for a chance to win, or visit Donate Games and Cancer for College‘s sites to give directly.
