What is Child's Play Charity?

And what does it have to do with technology? Child's Play Charity is a nonprofit started and largely supported by the video game industry and it's community. They raise money to buy toys, books, movies and games for children's hospitals and therapy centers worldwide. Throughout the year donors can either view a specific hospital's Amazon wish list and purchase directly from there, or donate cash to the charity.

Child's Play is a unique charity in that none of the money donated is goes towards upkeep costs. The charity's administrative needs are paid for by the Penny Arcade company, and they are also the founders. (Warning: The Penny Arcade website may contain material that is offensive, and is not for all audiences.)

So now the question of why? Of all the things to donate to, why does Child's Play focus on games for children in hospitals. As anyone who's had to stay in a hospital can tell you, they are b-o-r-i-n-g! That in addition to being scary for children can make for a very bad experience. By giving hospitals the opportunity to have group activities like a Nintendo Wii or board games, they are helping make sure that not only can hospitalized children have something entertaining to do to distract them from their situation, but also provide visiting friends and family members with something to do with them as well.

Last year alone over 3.5 million dollars were raised for Child's Play Charity, and each year they significantly more than the last. Please consider Child's Play Charity when making charitable donation this year.

UPDATE: The creators of Child's Play have recently announced that Child's Play will now be supporting women's shelters as well. "Women's shelters are also often kid's shelters as well." -Mike Krahulik

Practical Tip of the Day:
Donations to Child's Play can be made directly on their webpage, but you can also check out their calendar of events. Many individuals hold fundraising events throughout the year, ranging from competitions to video-game marathons (yes, there is such a thing) and bake sales. If you're going to donate money, why not have some fun with it?