Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Gaming marathon gives students chance to learn, raise money

Photos and story by Karen Kane

November 7 is Game Day at the Sylvania Campus! Though there may not be uniforms, and tailgate parties could take a different twist, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. students, faculty and staff will be in play for the 2015 Extra Life Gaming Marathon.

Part of a 24-hour national Marathon, the event is a fundraiser for hospitals in the Children’s Miracle Network. People play games for pledges which raise funds; at PCC students have an additional opportunity – to increase their computer skills by playing computer games.

Players can form teams or join individually, and are welcome at any time throughout the day. To register as a PCC player, go to www.extra-life.org, choose “Join,” click Extra Life Classic, click “Join a Team,” search for PCC Sylvania, and complete the form. Then let Diane Shingledecker know that you registered to play and which hours you will be playing.

Sponsors are needed as well. To sponsor, go to www.extra-life.org, choose “Donate,” enter PCC Sylvania in the search box, select an individual gamer, and choose the “Donate Now!” button.

PCC’s Computer Science students will network 50 computers for the day. Two rooms will be set up – one for college students and staff and a second for children and teens who want to participate. This is the second year PCC is participating in the local event, which raised more than $68,000 last year for OHSU’s Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, part of the Children’s Miracle Network. PCC’s 2014 contribution was $943.

“New this year at PCC is Dungeons and Dragons gaming, especially for English for Speakers of Other Languages students,” said Shingledecker.

The brainchild of Southeast Campus instructor Thomas Berney, a Dungeons and Dragons enthusiast, this new addition to PCC’s marathon will give ESOL students the opportunity to play in Extra Life while increasing their English skills.

Extra Life, an online grassroots movement, was started in honor of 15-year-old Victoria Enmon, who died from leukemia in 2008 after four years of treatment. During her illness, a local radio personality and member of a gamers club asked fellow members to send Victoria games to keep her spirits up. Thousands of games from all over the world began pouring in. That generosity spurred the club to start the annual fundraiser for other children in treatment and who cannot leave hospitals, often for months at a time.

The PCC event takes place from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on the second and third floors of the Technology ClassGet into room Building at Sylvania.

For more information, contact Diane Shingledecker, computer applications and office systems instructor and event coordinator, at (971) 722-4099.