Giving to Charity This Year Is 'Child's Play' - Successful Video Game Charity Launches 2004 Effort

    SEATTLE, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Penny-Arcade, the premier web comic
 focusing on the video game industry, announced the launch of their second
 annual Child's Play Charity.  This unique event, which has proven that
 video game enthusiasts are philanthropic, socially aware and very
 generous, is accessible via the website http://www.childsplaycharity.org.
     Founded in 2003, Child's Play's goal is to ease the strain of long-term
 hospitalization on children and their families by providing videogames,
 crafts, and other toys.  By leveraging Penny-Arcade.com's three million person
 reader-base, last year's event was an overwhelming success, collecting nearly
 $250,000 in toys and cash.  And because all involvement in the event is
 volunteer-based, 100% of the donations were presented to the Children's
 Hospital of Seattle.
     For 2004, Child's Play has grown to include four other National Children's
 Hospitals in San Diego, Oakland, Washington D.C. and Houston.  Participation
 is easy - prospective donors simply visit the website and select the hospital
 to which they'd like to give.  From there, they are taken to a specially
 compiled "wish list" on Amazon.com where they can select an item to donate
 that fits their budget.  All items purchased are automatically routed to a
 facility near the selected hospital where they're stored until presentation in
 mid-December.
     "What the Internet has done is remove the barriers to impulsive acts
 of generosity," stated Jerry Holkins, of Penny Arcade.  "When clicking a
 couple of times amounts to an act of genuine compassion, you can find Good
 Samaritans everywhere."
 
     About Penny-Arcade
     Equal parts online comic and commentary, Penny-Arcade
 (http://www.penny-arcade.com) covers videogames in a way that is genuine,
 insightful, and respected.  What started as a hobby for Jerry "Tycho" Holkins
 and Mike "Gabe" Krahulik has over five years grown into an online phenomenon
 that serves tens of millions of page views a month to millions of readers
 worldwide.  In addition to Child's Play, they also host the Penny Arcade
 Exposition, an annual celebration of gaming culture drawing thousands of
 hardcore gamers to Seattle every fall.
 
 

SOURCE  Child's Play