Extra Life empowers a new generation of gamers at Minefaire Chicago

Minecraft is one of the most popular, family friendly video games of the year. So when Minefaire came to Chicago, it’s no surprise that thousands of kids and families flocked to the Schaumburg Convention Center for Minecraft build battles, incredible stage performances, and world record attempts from leading experts. The Extra Life Chicago Guild got the chance to attend too, and got to meet a whole new generation of Extra Life and CMNH fundraisers.

Last year, Extra Life raised over $175,000 for Lurie Children’s by engaging hundreds of gamers throughout Chicago in gaming tournaments, live streams, and marathons. But even the youngest gamers can find impactful ways to game and fundraise for the kids at Lurie Children’s. Over 100 children and families joined Extra Life at Minefaire, all with their own unique take on how to fundraise through their community through gaming. Many parents opted to plan family board game nights to show their kids the value of giving back while playing games. A Girl Scout troop is planning a gaming marathon as a part of their service hours for the year. Many young gamers started making plans to bring Extra Life clubs to their schools and engage their sports teams in Extra Life marathons. These young people show that at any age, you can game and give back to your community. We are so excited to see what they accomplish this year!