TJSMCftC 2023: ETHERMEET MEMORIAL TOKENS ARE ON THE WAY!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, Ethermeet, Memorial, Prize, token

Hello all!  Greetings from the Crawl staff and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!  We have finally gotten everything together and The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure 2023: Ethermeet Memorial Tokens are in the mail!  Back in December, we raised $3,291 for the American Cancer Society with your help, and this is a beautiful token of our appreciation, magnificently adorned with Doug Kovacs Xcrawl Classics artwork to add to your luck pool! Thank you for your support for this incredible cause!

The tokens were sent out late yesterday, and I apologize for the poor timing with Gary Con, but time was running short and we wanted to get these into your hands!  Expect to see them in the next few days!

We will be kicking off our planning for the next Gamehole Con mega-funnel in the near future, and we are stoked to bring it to you!  You can look forward to updates as we get the plans in place – we are stoked to bring you the next quest for Good!

Additionally, please check out Purple Pirate Games’ latest Kickstarter, the 3rd level MCC adventure Installation 665 by Julian Bernick of Goodman Games and Spellburn notoriety. Julian is a very welcome presence at our Crawl for the Cure events giving his brand of frantic and hardcore adventure to our players and viewers! On top of that, the adventure contains additional contributions from other veteran authors Stephen Newton and Daniel Bishop, and a droolful mass of artwork is brought to you in this chunky tome! Check out the link and be drawn in by the secrets of Terra AD, you will not be disappointed! 

 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/purplepirategames/installation-665

Additionally, please consider supporting our other incredible sponsors of our events from our website. All of the awesome content everyone receives from their donations is fully provided by these stand-up, magnificent creators! Something else you will not regret. 

https://oursponsors-em.crawlforthecure.net/

Have an incredible St. Patrick’s Day, and thank you all again for your support of The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure, we are looking forward to the great Good we spread in the future! I hope to see folks at Gary Con, and hope to roll some dice with you!

Thanks!
Cory Welch and Staff
The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure

CRAWLERS CAME… CRAWLERS CONQUERED… HEROES BROUGHT HOPE TO THOSE NEED! THANK YOU FOR A VERY SUCCESSFUL JSMCftC 2023: ETHERMEET!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, DCC Mayhem, donations, Ethermeet, Results, Smite Cancer

– First, an apology. Cory took some time for some personal and professional tasks and commitments after Ethermeet, and this wrap-up of the event is terribly late. I hope you can forgive me for taking this time, as there were some things that needed to be handled over the period. All rewards minus the Memorial Token should have been met by this time, and you will set your eyes upon that little beauty VERY soon! Thank you for your understanding, and I sincerely apologize for needing the extended time to take care of these tasks.

On Saturday, December 9th, 2023, six Judges of incredible merit ran games from 7 AM CST until 3 AM CST with amazing players in the best roleplaying systems around to dazzle and entertain our most revered patrons which enabled us to earn $3,291 for the American Cancer Society! Our 16 generous sponsors gave our donors 20 hours worth of prizes and major prizes to our top donors! Everyone came together on December 9th to give aid to those fighting this harrowing disease! See your impact with The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure over the last 4 years of adventure and heroic contribution, Crawlers! We should breach $20,000 at our next event! THANK YOU, ALL, FOR YOUR TREMENDOUS SUPPORT!

Thank you, Judges for your exciting hours of adventure to collect for the cause!

  • Castle Keeper Chuck Cumbow of Troll Lord Games: Journey to White Plume Mountain (Castles & Crusades)
  • Judge Edwin Nagy of Frog God Games: The Stone Ado (Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition)
  • Judge Brendan LaSalle of Goodman Games: Dungeon City Limits (XCrawl Classics)
  • Judge Julian Bernick, Goodman Games Author: The Band from Utopia (Umerican Survival Guide)
  • Judge Luau Lou Hoefer of Dandyline Games: The Technomancer of Candy Mountain (Mutant Crawl Classics)
  • Neon Lord Brian Shutter of Super Savage Systems: Cyber Vamps from Beyond the Grave (Neon Lords of the Toxic Wasteland)

Thank you for giving your time and talents for the cause, and a special thank you to our “late show” participants, Luau Lou Hoefer and Brian Shutter for running into the wee hours of the morning Eastern Time Sunday to keep those donations flowing! Your commitment to the cause is immensely appreciated and bolstered our cause into the night!

Please visit the sites of all of our sponsors and support their superior collections of adventure products! You will not be disappointed!

All the prizes for your generosity should have been mostly completed before the 1st of the year, with a mistaken delayed send fixed recently and the upcoming release of Dandyline’s Unnatural Selections, Vol. 2 product coming soon! Our sponsors brought it to Ethermeet with the awesome products and donors should be wading goblin deep in adventure and excitement through their works!

We have completed the design of The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure 2023: Ethermeet Memorial Token featuring a jaw-dropping XCrawl Classics creation by Doug Kovacs. We are very pleased to present it to you now:

These are on order, and we will get these to you as soon as possible so you can use yours for your Luck or stunning marker token!

“Crawling for the prize, TOGETHER!”

BUT WAIT, THERE IS MORE! We have more to come in the year to come before Gamehole Con! I’m going to put together some Sponsor Delves showcasing the products of our incredible donors. Also, I will not fail in getting more of the past Ethermeet sessions back on to Twitch and YouTube! With 20 hours of play this year, I can’t guarantee I’ll get through all the past three years by the next Crawl, but I will attempt this Mighty Deed if I can.

We hope to have an incredible announcement for our community in the near future relating to the Crawl for the Cure, and we will be working this year for another awesome event at Gamehole Con XI!

We are so proud of this generous community that has come together for the cause! Thank you for enabling all of us to make a difference for those in need!

Thank you for your support of The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet 2023

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, donations, Ethermeet, Results, Smite Cancer

Hello all! I am sorry for the delay in wrapping up The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet 2023 this year. I needed catch up with personal and work obligations, and I’ll be honest to say the brainspace needed a bit of a break. All rewards except the Memorial Tokens (I’m working on getting that awesome artwork!) have been sent out to our legendary donors! Below is the message sent to our sponsors and donors – we made an incredible $3,291 over our 20-hour session jam, and had an incredible time of wonderful entertainment during the course of the event. I will follow up with the wrap up, but this was a sincere thank you to our awesome community for their efforts and treasure for the cause!

Hi all!  The Jerry Srefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet stream came to a close last night at 3 AM CST, and we have a current (and AWESOME) total of $3,291 to give to the American Cancer Society for their great works!

I went into a long hibernation yesterday and we’ll continue our work getting everything together over the next few days to get you the full results! We will be trying to automate our processes a bit (writing some scripts for crunching data) and getting your winnings together in e-mails confirming any prizes won during the event with you in the upcoming days.  We’re still working on getting the artwork on the Memorial Token, and we’ll also get that together for you as soon as possible!  In the meantime, you can find everything you have won from your awesome donations at: https://crawlforthecure.net/wpcftc/?page_id=1541 You can Search or Sort on the HOURLY RAFFLES SCHEDULE table to find all your winnings! We’ll tally up the contribution totals soon and get the major prize winners their prizes as well.  Thanks for your patience as we move this forward!

THANK YOU to all of our incredible DONORS, SPONSORS, GAME MASTERS and PLAYERS for making the Crawl for the Cure possible! (deserved thank yous will be forthcoming!) The team and I are humbled we are all able to make a difference through your support.

Thank you!

—

Cory Welch and Staff
The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure
https://crawlforthecure.net
Twitter/X: @crawlforthecure
Instagram: jerryscrawlforthecure

YOUR JERRY STEFEK MEMORIAL CRAWL FOR THE CURE DONATION MATTERS!

Posted on by Hazel Welch in ACS, allocations, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, donations, impact, Smite Cancer

The American Cancer Society is a leading cancer-fighting organization with a vision to end ​cancer as we know it, for everyone.

The ACS is improving the lives of people with cancer and their families as the only organization ​combating cancer through advocacy, research, and patient support to ensure that everyone ​has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer.

A donation of ANY AMOUNT helps improve the lives of cancer patients and ​their families. Here are some examples of how impactful your donation can be!

  • $10 – Helps people find hope and support online through the Cancer Survivors Network
  • $25 – Helps people facing breast cancer connect with trained survivors through the Reach ​To Recovery® program
  • $30 – Assists 1 person find free answers and much-needed emotional support through ​the 24/7 helpline
  • $50 – Provides one free ride to treatment through the Road To Recovery® program
  • $65 – Provides 1 free night’s stay at a Hope Lodge® community for people with cancer ​and their caregivers.
  • $500 – Could help provide ten free rides to treatment
  • $1,200 – Affords free lodging for a guest’s entire stay in a Hope Lodge community

Please join us for Ethermeet and donate to support this cause!

AMPLIFY DONATION COMPETITION!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Amplify, Crawl for the Cure, donations, Ethermeet, Smite Cancer, Tiltify


Interest and curiosity rewarded!


Thanks for coming to check out The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet 2023 and for extending your generosity to donate to the American Cancer Society!  Whether you’re a first-time viewer or a returning fan, we’d love it if you would AMPLIFY your impact by sharing with people you know and inviting them to join in.

This year you can AMPLIFY our reach, and your impact, to do more Good for the American Cancer Society.  On our Tiltify donation page, you can AMPLIFY the campaign by creating your own AMPLIFY link that you can use to share through social media.  The email you provide when creating the link will allow us to track the donations it generates.  Encourage people you know to check out and enjoy Ethermeet and make their own year-end donations to the ACS.  For some friendly competition and to thank you, we’ll award a $50 Amazon gift card to the person whose AMPLIFY link generates the highest donation total by the end of the stream! From the campaign link, press the “Generate amplify link” button and share your link to your social media to start the competition!  Let’s hit that $5,000 goal for the ACS! We’ll contact the winner by e-mail with your prize!

Thank you for your extended support of The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet!

ANNOUNCING: ETHERMEET 2023 FLGS GRASSROOTS ADVERTISING CONTEST!

Posted on by Steve in 2023, ACS, Advertising, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, DriveThruRPG, Ethermeet, FLGS, Grassroots, Prize

We are excited once again to announce a Grassroots Advertising Flyer Campaign for The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet 2023 to further bolster the cause, spread the word and give our Friendly Local Games Stores some recognition! We will hold a raffle for a $100 DriveThru RPG gift certificate for those that work with our awesome game store communities to spread the word about Ethermeet! We want to do as much Good as possible, and we’d love to have your help and thank you for that aid!

The rules:

  • Between now and 9 PM CST Friday, December 8th, 2023, print our PDF flyer (multiples appreciated!), and ask permission to post it in your local game store(s) to spread the word.
  • Take a picture of the posted flyer (details visible, please!) and an additional picture of the game store with its name and logo to thank them for their support!
  • Post these pictures and pertinent information about the game store to our Twitter/X or Instagram feed, (Twitter/X: @crawlforthecure, Instagram: jerryscrawlforthecure) with the hashtag #jerryscrawl – let’s give them some advertising!  Each game store post gives you another chance in the drawing.
  • We’ll contact the winner through Twitter/X or Instagram to get your full information after the drawing for you to collect your loot!

We think this is a great way to get our word out in game stores, spread it on Twitter/X or Instagram (or both!) and give our local retailers a bump for their support of the cause! Thank you for your support, and we wish you good hunting in obtaining this trove of adventure!

https://ethermeet.crawlforthecure.net

Twitter/X: @crawlforthecure
Instagram: jerryscrawlforthecure

UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN, MY FRIEND! REMEMBERING AARON KOELMAN…

Posted on by caddy1071 in Aaron Koelman, Hero, Memorial, Smite Cancer

We have lost a great warrior from our clan on Thanksgiving, November 24th, 2023. The mighty Aaron Koelman has passed from our world after an incredible and unrelenting battle with pancreatic cancer. His physical form has passed, but his spirit, kindness and legacy will always live on in our hearts. Aaron took on his battle with faith, courage and uncommon wisdom, always planning ahead for what we hoped would not pass, but fighting always for his continued life with the family he dearly loved. Thank you, Aaron, for all the gifts you gave us in this world.

I first met Aaron at Gary Con, when I was running Call of Cthulhu regularly, way back when (when I had more time to give it the proper love!), in my version of Blackwater Creek. Aaron looked the imposing hero legend: a shocking mane of long red hair and a matching mighty beard, a bulk of massive muscle, kilted and ready for battle! That image had never changed for me, mentally, whatever challenges had set upon him. I was honored to have had Aaron play with me in a Call of Cthulhu online recording (sadly, yet to be released because of technical issues I need to nail down), be a part of our award-winning XCrawl Classics tournament team, The Punxsutawney Painiacs, and he has been a stalwart supporter of The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure! I was proud to hear from Aaron that he loved playing the Crawl and he was inspired by its success! Aaron always wanted to help others and we are honored to have helped enable that.

Aaron played at the Crawl for the Cure: Gamehole Con, Take Back Tegel Manor! this year. He played the entire day supporting the event, even though you could tell he was tired and could use some rest. I was able to sit a few minutes during the run, put a hand on his back, and thank him for being there, and I treasure that. This is who Aaron was: he took on hard challenges for the greater good, he was a true hero in our lifetime with all the class and courage we all strive to possess.

I did not want to put Aaron on the spot with everything going on, but I think in his memory, it is imperative that everybody truly understand the person that Aaron was. For The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Gamehole Con 2023, Take Back Tegel Manor!, we had an angel donor providing us $2,000 to the American Cancer Society for the Good of those suffering from cancer. I don’t think it is much of a surprise that it was Aaron, giving back in solidarity with the community he loved to help those suffering from what he courageously endured. I pray that his spirit and will are also an inspiration for others who are afflicted: you can get passed this. Aaron fought and fought – this was a long ordeal which he made the most of and won more years with his family because of his conviction and positive thoughts; I know that others can emulate this true hero and other battles will be won. God Bless you, Aaron Koelman. Thank you for everything you have done for our community and in our lives to make this world a better place. Until we meet again… Love ya, Brother.

Cory

LONG OVERDUE THANK YOUS WHICH MUST BE GIVEN!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, Gamehole Con, Hero, Judges, Team, Thank You, Volunteers

Hello all! I did want to make sure I gave some explicit thank yous to the people who make this event happen – as things have been getting bigger, it’s been vastly more challenging, and these folks have made sure you have a fun event that raises money for good! THANK YOU for making these events possible – I am eternally in your debt!

THANK YOU:

  • Matt Robertson (A.K.A. Grape Ape or the Master of R.A.W.!) – A special thanks to Matt for jumping in remotely a throwing tons of creative ideas into the mix to make it a better event! We couldn’t use them all, but he definitely made things cooler and inspired ideas for future events! Thank you, Matt, for all the awesome contributions from afar for this and past events! You are awesome!
  • Sean Murphy – Sean and Edwin are the RPG charity superpowers in my eyes. Thanks for always being there to provide great examples and ideas for us to learn and create from! You rock!
  • Jim Meyers – Jim was there in the morning and late in the evening setting up and breaking everything down, making up because we were up all night preparing and not on time. (SOMEDAY I’ll fix this. 🙁 ) THANK YOU, JIM! Your incredible work ethic to push past the tired and whirl circles around me in a zombified state and keep things on schedule was astounding! (And then run many hours throughout the day AND build out his personal Gong of Doom the weekend before for an awesome addition of fun and setting… You sir, are amazing!)
  • Keith Nelson – Another who was there for set up, take down and ran the majority of the day so we could collect the awesome money we did for the American Cancer Society! Additionally, wandered the parking lot with me late in the evening after the event when I was so tired I hopelessly forgot where my car was. Thank you, Brother, for taking care of an exhausted Judge and taking the time to chat about the old school with me for a bit in wind-down – WAY awesome ending to an excellent event.
  • Chris Zank – Chris was the face of the event to many who walked up with his cheerful expertise! He knew our sponsors’ products cold and spread enthusiasm throughout the event wowing our ops staff all the way through – THANK YOU!
  • Gary Cunningham – Gary has been dedicating hours running for the Crawl for the Cure for many years now, however confusing I make the additional rules for the event! THANK YOU for all your help in running an awesome game for our supporters!
  • Bill Walters – Bill is incredibly generous in his support for the Crawl! He helps throughout the days, contributes awesome and very valuable prizes (just check the prize list – scheezooey 😉 ), provided additional awesome Frog God Games silk screens of Tegel Manor for the event, and even orchestrated the “donation bells” acquisition so you got your raffle tickets in good order! You are awesome, Bill! THANK YOU!
  • Peter Garancis and daughter Kylee – (not on the crew, just awesome player volunteers!!!) SPECIAL thanks to Peter and Kylee!! They were stalwart players and were there setting up for us – talk about excited players! Pete also donated the Funky Dice Trays from his company, Dark Nebula Games. THANK YOU, Pete and Kylee for your efforts and donations to the campaign!
  • Alex Kammer, Josh Hoyt and Gamehole Con – Thank you for always supporting my crazy events and making them possible! Your trust and support are so appreciated and honored!
  • Our sponsors – Just amazed – this community rocks. Please support them.
  • Edwin Nagy – Edwin is a mentor to me in all of this and I always, probably annoyingly, ask him for advice and ideas on these events. Additionally, he lent the awesome Frog God Games toys (battlemat-scale size map of Tegel Manor!) to make this spectacle possible! It was awesome! THANK YOU, Edwin!
  • Steve Seminerio and Hazel Welch – The people who without there would not be a Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure! While I come up with the gaming ideas, Steve and Hazel do all the real work of how we work the raffles and donations in the background, set up the OBS for the event, etc! As well as putting up with Stress Cory and the massive amount of work preparing and winding down the event. Thanks and love for everything you do to make these insane events possible! It would be impossible to do without your grit and support!

The Jerry Stefek Crawl for the Cure often gets labeled as “Cory’s project” – I hope it’s very clear that there is an army of support behind this event to bring you incredible gaming experiences that provide Good for others! THANK YOU, ALL, for your support of the Crawl for the Cure and the Good and hope we help provide for others in need! I am so happy we can share these successes together!

Thank you!
Cory Welch and Staff
The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure

THE FUNDS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED BY THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, donations, Gamehole Con, impact, Results, Smite Cancer, Thank You

Hello all! Sorry to have been late on an update with this! The check was actually sent last Monday via Certified Mail and arrived on Thursday the 9th of November! Your efforts have given the American Cancer Society $5,000 more capital to use for research, education and aid for those stricken with cancer and their loved ones; THANK YOU for your incredible support in making things better for those in need! Your Mighty Deeds have triumphed!

Most prizes should have been supplied, but there are a few we are still working on with e-mail tag. If you are having any issues with prizes, please let us know. We will be first to admit that with the overwhelming support we were given for the event, our minds were reeling trying to get everybody their due. Please write jerryscrawlforthecure@gmail.com if you think there have been any issues with your raffle rewards.

THANK YOU, to all of our incredible sponsors for their EXTREME generosity in giving our donors really awesome items for their charitable donations! I will be the broken record – this community is amazing with a huge heart and determination to help those in need! Please visit our sponsors for your gaming and gift-giving needs!

Thank you very much to Alex Kammer and Josh Hoyt of Gamehole Con for always being supportive of the wild ride we have preparing for the Crawl for the Cure events! We appreciate their willingness to help our little crew try to do great things for the community! Thanks for giving our efforts and dreams a home!

Don’t forget, The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure: Ethermeet 2023 is just around the corner! We’ll be hosting it on Twitch channel DCC Mayhem on Saturday December 9th, 2023 from 7 AM CST until 3 AM CST Sunday to give our West Coast supporters some more fun time! Stay tuned – we’ll get this launched soon!

Have a great Thanksgiving Holiday, and we hope to see you at ETHERMEET!

Sincerely,
Cory Welch and Staff
The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure

TAKE BACK TEGEL MANOR! HAS PASSED, THE VILLAGERS HAVE RISEN TO PUSH BACK THE TIDE OF EVIL, AND THE MANOR HAS BEEN RUMP FAMILY MENACE HAS BEEN QUELLED…FOR NOW!

Posted on by caddy1071 in 2023, ACS, American Cancer Society, Crawl for the Cure, donations, Gamehole Con, impact, Memorial, Results, Steve Strecker, Tegel Manor, Thank You

On Saturday, October 21st, 2023 at Gamehole Con X in Madison, WI, players came out in force to combat the plague of Rump family which imposed their evil machinations upon them at the Take Back Tegel Manor! event! Our 18 seats were filled most of the day (and sometimes with a line!) with players with a sense of adventure and giving, as we raised an amazing $5,000 in donations for the American Cancer Society! Our total impact from these events over the past 4 years is over $16,000!

A special thanks to everybody who made this possible: Our incredible sponsors (The Holidays are coming, everybody – please consider them!), our incredible Judge and support staff, and ALL the players and their generous donations pushing their Mighty Deeds to this level of Good for those in need! We are staggered by this success, and we will do our best to continue providing top-notch, fun and extraordinary events! Thank you!

The game was played as a full-octane, high-level haunted house with 0-level funnel characters… With a twist! Characters in the twilight, necrotic pocket dimension summoned by the Rumps for their evil plans could contact the souls of formerly defeated enemies, allowing them to come back as avatars of higher levels to fight the terrible family! However, the peons would have to discover these spirits by searching the Manor in their fragile, peasant forms, with much adventure and drama to be had! A wonderful time donating for survival and story led us to an incredible amount that we raised for the ACS!

WITNESS the Treasure Room and the Mighty Monster Donation by a single donor, which is worthy of the giant’s trophy, the Halbard of Broll from the Great Hall of Tegel Manor! The donor contributed $2,000 to the cause to help others! We are honored to accept this for others in need! Thank you!

We have received so many compliments about how much fun our players had, we cannot wait to get back next year with our next adventure! Our sponsors were so generous in their giving to our donating players, I cannot say enough: your donations will get you some pretty sweet loot as you play! Please mark a block to drop in – your deeds do not go unrewarded! Please take look at the INCREDIBLE prize line-up we gave to our players for this event! Thank you, sponsors, for your generosity!

Thank you, all, for your support and enthusiasm for The Jerry Stefek Memorial Crawl for the Cure events! We are honored to bring these to you in the memory of Jerry, and other friends and family members of the community who have gone on to their next adventure over the span of the years. A special farewell to Steve Strecker, good friend and gaming buddy of Michael Spredemann of 2 Old Guy Games. We lost Steve this year, and the pictured 2nd Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Ravenloft module, Neither Man Nor Beast was contributed from his collection to the event, to help those in need, in his memory. This community is incredible and we are proud to be able to enable your generosity for the aid of those less fortunate! Thank you, for all of your support!

Please look for us online the second weekend of December (the 9th), for Ethermeet 2023! We’ll have the same level of awesome gameplay you expect and we’ll get our sponsor list out in the near future so you know what to expect for your contributed treasure! It’s just around the corner and we look forward to seeing you there!