Give a Little Back: Child’s Play 2007

I was born with severe hemophilia A, which is a complicated way of saying that my blood has problems clotting.  As a result of this, I’d have to make pretty regular trips (once or twice a year) to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where Dr. Allen would draw some blood and tell me that, no, not much had changed since the last time they saw me.  Then I’d get a lollipop and convince my dad that instead of going in to school late we should go to a Phillies game or see a movie, but I digress.

While waiting for my turn in the back room, I’d inevitably have one of three options - watch the TV (which was usually tuned to a morning talk show or soap opera, for the sake of entertaining the moms who had brought their kids), read a book (which, being a kid, I wouldn’t always remember to bring), or the Game Castle.  The Game Castle was a marvelous little thing - literally, shaped like a generic fairytale castle, it held a monitor as well as a Sega Genesis with one or two controllers.  I remember passing the time with Echo the Dolphin, Sonic, and Comix Zone, and for those 10-15 minutes (or half an hour if I was lucky and there weren’t any other kids who wanted to play), life was as good as it could get.

I tell this story not because I’m feeling nostalgic, but because last week the guys at Penny Arcade announced that Child’s Play has started up for 2007.  Child’s Play is an outstanding charity which has brought the joy of gaming to upwards of hundreds of thousands of children’s hospitals worldwide in the last four years.  There are two ways to donate - either send money to a general PayPal fund that will be distributed to all of the hospitals, or click through to a specific hospital’s Amazon wishlist and pick and choose.  Whether buying something as simple as a sticker book or as extravagant as a 360, you will be making a difference for patients of children’s hospitals across the world - 45 hospitals from six different countries are participating already, with more surely to be added as the holidays approach.

Last year, when I found out that my old stomping grounds at CHOP had been added to the list, I immediately logged onto Amazon and paid for a black DS and Final Fantasy III cartridge.  This year, maybe I’ll add a PS2 or two to the cart, or perhaps show some love to one of the hospitals in Australia or the UK.  Whether through donations big or small, I hope you’ll join me in supporting this wonderful cause.