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Relay for Life 2011 in Second Life: Success Plus

I don’t usually just reproduce media releases, but this one’s definitely worth making an exception for:

Relay For Life of Second Life shatters records in 2011, raises US$375,000 for cancer research

Relay For Life, the signature fundraising event of the American Cancer Society, has once again shattered records in Second Life.

Less than halfway through the 2011 Relay season, the Relay For Life of Second Life had already raised more than one million dollars all-time.

At the Wrap-Up Party on Saturday, August 20, 2011 Event Chair MamaP Beerbaum proudly announced that the seventh Relay For Life of Second Life had set a new season fundraising record of US$375,000, had a record number of 140 teams, and a record number of over 3,000 relayers.

This year’s theme was ‘Seasons of Hope’ and was the largest to date, with a track lined by luminaria winding through 41 sims of amazing builds representing the different seasons. Some 2,140 avatars completed one or more laps, a combined total of 3,486 laps, and visited the campsites and the designer sims. And 4,817 luminaria were lit in support of loved ones going through treatment, and in memory of those heroes who have passed on.

Speaking to committee and team members and volunteers at the Wrap-Up Party, MamaP Beerbaum said: ‘WOW, What a wonderful Relay we had! From Kick-Off in March to Relay Weekend in July, you all worked non-stop, with a passion and commitment that never wavered!

‘As I think back on this season, I am in awe of so many things. We broke so many records. We took the theme ‘Seasons of Hope’ to places we never thought it would go. And we brought it to life on 41 sims creating a breathtaking experience for all who found their way there. And most importantly we proved that we really can work together as One Team!

‘Thank you for giving me the honor of being your chair. Thank you for showing the world that SL is a good place, and that in this Second Life of ours, we CAN make a difference.’

Stingray9798 Raymaker ( in real life Jeff Montegut, the American Cancer Society representative in Second Life) said: ‘It makes me the proudest person in the whole ACS office to represent the coolest people on the planet!’

Spirit of Relay

The ‘Spirit of Relay’ individual award went this year to Daaneth Kivioq. Announcing the award, last year’s winner Ember Farina said: ‘The Individual Spirit of Relay is awarded to the individual that embodies the ‘Spirit of the Relay’ and takes into consideration the ‘spirit’ of the individual, how they embraced Relay For Life and the American Cancer Society Mission, and the enthusiasm displayed.’

This year, just as Relay was kicking into high gear, Daaneth suffered a debilitating stroke. Ember said: ‘His motivation for a fast recovery was actually Relay for Life! He worried so much about his team that he came back in world before he could even read or type; they all used voice to communicate with him to ensure that the team would keep moving forward.’

Nevar Lobo, co-captain of last year’s winner of the ‘Spirit of Relay’ team award, announced this year’s team winner Team OD, followed by Steelhead Salmons in second place and Team Caledon in third place.

For a complete list of Wrap-Up Awards see: http://rflofsl.blogspot.com/2011/08/final-award-winners.html

For more pictures from the Wrap-Up Party see http://www.flickr.com/photos/ishtarskiss/.

Looking ahead

Looking ahead to 2012 MamaP Beerbaum announced that she would be continuing as Event Chair, supported by this year’s Co-Chair Dwen Dooley and new Co-Chair Nikki Mathieson. Nikki, who has been relaying in Second Life since 2007 and was this year’s Event Day area chair, said: ‘It is a tremendous honor to be invited to be a Co-Chair and I really look forward to the upcoming season.’ Her message to Relayers was ‘Keep relaying all winter… Do that by bringing someone… anyone… even if it’s just one person who doesn’t know about us… to ACS Island and let them know we’re here… in SL. Tell them about our RFL season and get them watching for that kick off in the spring… invite them to it… get them excited and enthused to jump onboard with us.’

The Kick-Off for RFL of SL 2012 will be on March 10, 2012. Next year’s theme will be ‘Time for a Cure’. And the clock is already ticking!

Nearly 400 thousand US dollars is nothing to sneeze at for cancer research. Kudos to the organising team for what’s become an iconic annual event in Second Life.

[Photo courtesy of Saeriah Thei]

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Relay for Life in Second Life: 2011

Relay for Life 2011 is in its closing stages as we speak in Second Life. US$343,000 has been raised at time of writing (71 million Linden dollars) and there’s still plenty to see and do. As always musical entertainment is a focus in addition to the relay itself, and there’s plenty on offer.

If you haven’t already, jump in and participate. Even better, add to the donation tally!

All the details you need to get involved are here.

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Merged realities – events and issues for virtual worlds

metaplace-avatar 1. Metaplace are previewing some new avatar customisation options on their forums. Don’t forget anyone can register for free to test out Metaplace now.

2. If you ever needed proof of how Relay for Life in Second Life is going from strength to strength, here it is:

Leaders of the Relay For Life of Second Life travelled to Dallas, Texas this past weekend to participate in the 2009 Relay For Life Nationwide Leadership Summit. The Summit is an annual activity bringing together Relay staff and volunteer leadership for 2 days of training to help each Relay improve and grow. Attendees from Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and South Africa were joined by Second Life as honored guests. The summit goers attended various workshops designed to arm them with the newest innovations and ideas, reinforce basic Relay activities and share individual ideas and successes.

Relay For Life of Second Life was represented by incoming Event Chair Tayzia Abattoir, co-chair Nuala Maracas and Trader Whiplash. They were joined there by Staff Partner Stingray9798 Raymaker.

Reuel Johnson, the American Cancer Society’s Vice President for Relay For Life specifically cited Relay For Life of Second Life during his opening remarks, noting that the virtual Relay had exceeded its target, raising more than $274,000, had attracted more than 120 teams, and had over 750 years of survivorship represented on the track during it’s opening lap on July 18th.
The avatar of Trader Whiplash, co-winner of the 2009 Spirit of Relay award in Second Life, presented a 3 minute video to the nearly 500 attendees, as part of the Quality portion of the summit.

(Thanks to Belle Loll for the heads-up)

3. Skribe Forti has produced a tasty machinima based in a world called Blue Mars, which is currently in beta:

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Merged realities – events and issues for virtual worlds

abc-island-july2009 1. ABC Island‘s friends are seeking feedback on the new Pool Studio. It features a green screen area for Machinima production and a cinema section where we hope to stream video shortly.

2. Interested in helping entrepreneurs in developing countries? Our Metaverse Aid team is growing slowly and more than a dozen ventures have been funded to date. Why not join us?

3. There’s lots of buzz around the US Government’s Deputy CTO, Beth Noveck, who’s a long-tim Second Life resident who is still dropping in regularly.

4. Second Nights is a new website / social network for those who enjoy Second Life’s entertainment on offer. A ‘finder’ feature for artists, clubs, DJs and more is available.

second_nights

5. The 2009 Relay for Life in Second Life has completed, with more than US 260 thousand dollars raised. Here’s one Australian blog devoted to raising awareness of the event.

6. Tateru Nino has Ten Great Tips for New Second Life Users that are well worth reading.

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Relay for Life in Second Life: teams being formed

A yearly highlight in Second Life is the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. The 2007 and 2008 events were big successes, with more than 55 million Linden Dollars (approximately 200 thousand US dollars).

relay_2009

Teams have started forming and if any Australian or New Zealand teams are forming, do let us know and we’ll promote your fundraising efforts. The team registration form can be found here.

The Australian Relay for Life is a superb community event for a lot of towns and cities. The Second Life version achieves that same community vibe and it’s an opportunity to remember those lost to cancer, to support those currently fighting cancer and to help find more effective treatments for cancers.

Thanks to SL Entrepreneur Magazine for the heads-up.

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Second Life – Relay for Life 2008

Second Life’s Relay for Life is well underway – it’s hard to believe it’s been a year since the last one.

Check the schedule and get involved if you can.

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