RetroRoleplaying: The Blog

A good friend of mine who long time D&D players may know from her days as an editor (and occasional designer/developer) at TSR is having a very bad year and is about to loose her house unless she gets some funds. Karen Boomgarden did a lot of editing work at TSR back in the day and was co-designer of my favorite Amazing Engine game, For Faerie, Queen, and Country. Since her TSR days, she's remarried and was doing well until the economy collapsed. She's been out of work for two years and her husband has been out of work for a year. Their daughter fell off a balcony and was injured pretty badly (although remarkably not as badly as she could have been) earlier this year.

Karen and family have been told they will lose their house this summer unless that can raise about $2500 to get current on their mortgage so they can possibility qualify for an unemployment adjustment before their mortgage is sold yet again and they have to start all over trying to negotiate with yet another mortgage company (yet again). They are currently working with Citi (which makes things even harder, I know). On a non-gaming message board I co-admin where Karen has been a long time member, we've managed to raise about 50% of this in donations over the last ten days. After discussing this with Alexi Debois (who is donating the copies of FEZ I and Quest for the Fazzlewood for our cancer fund raiser), we've come up with a way to you can help both our cancer fund and Karen's mortgage problems. For the next 48 hours (say until 9pm CDT Monday evening) any money donated to the RetroRoleplaying Cancer Fund will be split 50/50 (after Paypal fees, if any) between Karen and the cancer fund. Donors will still get full credit for their total donation in chances to win the prizes that Alex is donating and the full dollar amount given will count toward the largest donations for the "high donor" items (TSR's Warriors of Mars, FGU's Royal Armies of the Hyborean Age, and TSR's Metamorphosis Alpha). To make this clear, let's say you donate $50 and there are no Paypal fees (as you donated from your Paypal balance), $25 would go to Karen and $25 to the Retroroleplaying Cancer Fund. You'd get 5 chances in the drawings and the full $50 would count toward being one of the highest donors in our current Retroroleplaying Cancer Fund drive.

So here's a chance to help two decent causes with one stone, err donation. If you can spare a ten or a twenty, or even more, it will help so much. Karen and family might be able to avoid foreclosure and my wife and I will pay off more cancer bills. To donate and help Karen, send a donation in any amount -- small or large -- via Paypal before 9pm CDT Monday evening (May 14th). If you can't donate, good thoughts and prayers for Karen and her family (and that Citi not live down to their reputation) are more than welcome.

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The FEZ: I and Quest for the Fazzlewood Giveaway (Mini Cancer Fund Drive) is on (through May 21, 2012). Every $10 donated gives you one chance to win (details/rules described in the above-linked post): either FEZ 1 (the 1982 Valley of Trees version), the Quest for the Fazzlewood from Metro Detroit Gamers. Multiple drawings will be held as described in the above linked post. The two highest donors (in amount donated) will receive TSR's Warriors of Mars, TSR's Metamorphosis Alpha and/or FGU's Royal Armies of the Hyborean Age. These items are in addition to the usual PDF downloads and other benefits of a donation to the RetrpoRoleplaying Cancer Fund. To get help us pay our cancer treatment related bills (and to get access to some special downloads and possibly the above mentioned items), send a donation in any amount -- small or large -- to me via Paypal. Thank you!