Today@Sam Article
Houstonian To Host Charity Livestream
Nov. 1, 2016
SHSU Media Contact: Tricia Sims
Sam Houston State University’s student-run newspaper The Houstonian will host a 25-hour “Extra Life” livestream to raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals on Nov. 5. beginning at 8 a.m.
Campus Culture Editor Ethan Horn is heading up the event, along with other Houstonian editors.
“The Houstonian is dedicated to writing articles and hosting events that impact the community in positive ways,” Horn said. “The live-stream offered an opportunity for us to raise money for an important cause and to help people in the Huntsville area, while also giving our audience a way to view and interact with the experience.”
Extra Life is a charity organization that partners with the Children's Miracle Network to help local children's hospitals in getting additional funding. According to Horn, Extra Life is growing exponentially and The Houstonian wants to help get the message out to others about what the charity has done.
“Extra Life is growing at an enormous rate and anything we can do to help that growth is something we want to do,” Horn said. “By participating in the event we may inspire other Sam students to do so as well, causing a chain reaction that will do some real good.”
During the livestream, editors will play games, create art, host tournaments and record live podcasts as they work to raise money for Texas Children's Hospital.
The fundraiser allows the hospital to waive the cost of expensive medical treatment for families who do not have money for the health care.
“Without grassroots fundraising efforts such as ours, they wouldn't be able to give out millions of dollars a year in medical treatments to children in need,” Horn said.
The history of 24-hour charity events goes back to 1949 when the first telethon was hosted by Milton Berle in which he raised more than 1 million dollars for cancer research.
“We hope to continue this tradition with a modern twist, playing video games,” Horn said. “We have set our goal conservatively at $500, but we would love to raise way more.”
A few other organizations will join The Houstonian in the livestream, including SHSU eSports.
The livestream will play a variety of games including new releases like “Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare,” “Battlefield 1,” “Gears of War 4,” “Elder Scrolls V,” “The Witness,” “Jackbox Party Pack 3,” and some board games.
In addition to games, The Houstonian will air live podcast. This semester, The Houstonian has started two podcasts called The Leaflets and The Houstonian Sports Roundup. Both will be featured during the livestream.
To watch the livestream visit twitch.tv/thehoustonianshsu. For anyone interested in donating to the cause visit http://tinyurl.com/z2utbbm.
“We hope anyone who tunes in or donates will have the chance to contribute to local kids in our area,” Horn said.
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