It’s been far too long since we last reported on the ongoing charitable escapades of Rare staff, so here’s an update!
We recently had a spring clean of the studio’s storage spaces, giving employees a chance to run off with quality game-related goods in return for a donation to our chosen charity, Get-Well Gamers UK. After a UK-wide Microsoft initiative at the end of 2014 to round up donations, we wanted to see what else we could do for Get-Well Gamers. Their lovely team collect unwanted consoles, games and more to donate to children’s wards of UK hospitals, helping children to communicate and interact with each other and providing them with an outlet for fun. We sent the team just shy of £650 from our little clearout. Want to make a donation of your own? Visit their donation page!
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We also ran events throughout 2014 to raise money for SpecialEffect, finishing with a total of £2,498. SpecialEffect are a UK charity using technology to enhance the quality of life of those living with disabilities, and much of this work revolves around giving them access to games. With some very clever controller modifications, the organisation can help children with a wide range of disabilities play games and share the fun with friends and family. While they’ve made excellent use of Kinect to date they also incorporate things like eye movement input, custom speech setups and heavily modified joysticks for children with specific needs such as playing using only their feet.
Nick from SpecialEffect had this to say:
“More and more people with disabilities are contacting SpecialEffect in order to help them game, be this with specialist controllers through to eye control technology. SpecialEffect is about creating a level playing field so that people with disabilities can have fun and freedom. The charity relies on voluntary donations so the support from Rare really does make a massive difference as we seek to meet growing demand.”
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All this good news got us wondering about the other charity efforts that Rare staff were recently or imminently involved in, so we went around and asked…
Last year our Facilities Co-ordinator Anna faced her fears head-on and did a skydive to raise money for Cancer Research UK. She also tempted us all with cakes and biscuits in order to drum up donations, all of which helped her to raise more than £1,500 for the charity. Anna now hopes there’s more skydiving in her future! Mad.
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Meanwhile, VFX artist Andreas and his wife Natalie have been working on a film for the last two years which showcases animal rescue in the Costa Rican rainforest, raising awareness of animal mistreatment. They want to tell the animals’ stories and show their unique personalities, highlighting the importance and intrinsic value of all life. In addition to making the film, they’ve been working to raise money for the rescue centre featured in it. So far they’ve gathered almost £3,000. Learn more about their project on their Facebook page and see some of the animals in the pics below!
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Rare sound designer Guillaume and his steampunk musical solo project (that’s right) took part in an online bundle sale last year and raised over £14,000 for Direct Relief, who provide healthcare and emergency response to communities around the world.
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And engineer James took to the streets of London last summer to run 10k and raise money for SpecialEffect. His efforts brought in a total of £900, which goes to help people like Tom.
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Finally, two great efforts for charities that are a little more local. Ian, another one of our engineers, ran the London Marathon last weekend to raise money for Wishes 4 Kids, a local charity that grants wishes to those 18 years and under who are life limited, terminally ill, have experienced life-changing physical or emotional traumas, have suffered major abuse or are diagnosed as HIV positive. Ian crossed the finish line in three hours and four minutes. Hero!
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Animator Andy raised money last autumn for The Air Ambulance Service which covers the UK counties of Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Rutland without receiving any government funding. As part of his efforts, Andy arranged for a bottle to be placed by the till in Rare’s on-site restaurant and filled with everyone’s spare change, which added almost £50 to his fundraising efforts.
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We’re very proud of the efforts from all involved! If you’re a patron or supporter of a charity you think we should know about, by all means drop us a line.