Exhibit Life Size Statues

Mike Ferry and his wife Ann started sharing their life size statues with the comic world for pictures and for a lot of fun.

They collect donations on a voluntary basis only because not everything at a comic convention should cost more than a smile.

They currently have the following life size figures:

Marvel – Deadpool (butt signed by Morena Baccarin), Rocket, and teenage Groot (actual size close to Rocket)

Arkham Asylum video game – Batman and Harley Quinn

Aliens – Alien egg with poseable face hugger

Gremlins – Stripe, the flasher, anonymous gremlin

Star Wars – Yoda, Watto, and Anakin Skywalker

Hero Initiative is a charity near and dear to their hearts.

They learned about Hero Initiative at Gem City Comic Con about 2 years before Josh Medors passed away from Cancer.

His story and many others can be see at the following website:

COMIC CREATORS IN NEED ⋆ HERO INITIATIVE

August 17, 2022 0

988 and MADFEST

We wanted to make sure everyone hears about the new number to call for those who are in a mental health crisis and events with the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention.

Those seeking support during a mental health or emotional crisis may dial 988 to connect to a nationwide support network beginning tomorrow. The transition to a simplified three-digit number is meant to increase access to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and will operate similar to 911.

The move was facilitated by almost $300M in federal funding to both expand telephone infrastructure and increase call center staff. Via the network, trained counselors at more than 180 centers will be available over phone, text, or chat—users may call on behalf of themselves or others. The current 10-digit number has received more than 20 million calls since it was launched in 2005.

Suicide was one of the three leading causes of death in the US for those between 10 and 24 years of age in 2020 and claimed nearly 46,000 lives that year—almost double the number of homicides.

Mountain Artist Democracy EC has brought back MADFEST on July 30th 2022 at the Nitro Soccer Complex in Nitro from 10am to 10pm. The event is to help raise mental health awareness with sponsorship with the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention WV.

They will have live music from bands all day long like Hurl Brickbat, Heavy Hitters, Sever The Wicked, The Switch, Pinky’s Brains, and the headliner 5 Star Rebellion. Guest Speakers Tinia Creamer of Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue and licensed professional counselor Reverend Rance Berry. There will also be art vendors and food trucks. Admission is free and is open

The AFSP WV is also having an online volunteer meeting Sunday if you want to learn about helping out.

July 23, 2022 0

Charity: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

DualCon has joined with the local chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to raise money for their mission.

We will be running a raffle of donated items, and more activities to raise money, at the convention. We will keep you updated on what all we have. The AFSP will be on hand to talk with about their work and be helping us with a panel on mental health and gaming.

From the AFSP:

The grassroots work we do focuses on eliminating the loss of life from suicide by: delivering innovative prevention programs, educating the public about risk factors and warning signs, raising funds for suicide research and programs, and reaching out to those individuals who have lost someone to suicide.

As a part of AFSP’s growing nationwide network of chapters, we bring together people from all backgrounds who want to prevent suicide in our communities. Families and friends who have lost someone to suicide, vulnerable individuals, mental health professionals, clergy, educators, students, community/business leaders, and many others energize our chapter.

Suicide is a leading cause of death – and it is preventable. With your support, we’ll be one step closer to achieving our bold goal of reducing the suicide rate 20% by 2025. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention leads the fight against suicide.Funds raised from The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention events allow us to fund research, create educational programs, advocate for public policy, and support survivors of suicide loss.

Your efforts will help to save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide.

#TogetherWeAreStronger

June 16, 2022 0

Game Bundles for Charity

I wanted to bring attention to two bundles full of games for different charities to support on the indie platform Itch.io.

The first is one to raise money to help during the war in Ukraine. 736 creators are offering up 998 table-top RPGs, computer games, music, game development tools, comics, books, and more for a donation as low as $10. The money raised will be split between International Medical Corps and Voices of Children.

Two days left to help them reach their goal of $6,000,000. They are already over $5 million.

The other one is smaller, with 493 items from 300 creators, but still a good cause. A fundraiser to fight for trans rights in Texas. Proceeds will be split between Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT) and Organizacion Latina de Trans en Texas (OLTT). This one is all table-top RPGs. They have also partnered with Hit Point Press, Solarian Games, and Monte Cook Games where if you send them a screenshot of your reciept you get more games from them.

They are running 19 more days to raise $420,000.

Lots of great games in either bundle. Maybe something new that could be played at the con. Both good causes to support.

March 15, 2022 0