So this post is waaaaaay overdue. But to be honest, it’s been years since I used this site. I was really only keeping the domain for the email. But after some talking with friends, I figured I might as well get back into it. And what better way to kick things off, than talking about St Jude?

A few weeks ago, I was invited to the PLAYLIVE summit in Memphis. Anyone who’s watched my streams in May knows how I feel about St Jude/PLAYLIVE. This was legitimately a dream come true, even for my socially anxious self. Plus, to be completely honest, Mom needed a couple nights away, lol.

Nothing was going to prepare me for what that summit would do to me emotionally, or even socially.

Monday I got to meet a lot of other streamers who are also passionate about St Jude. Not only did I get to make new friends, but I got to hang out with people who I genuinely look up to as streamers, activists, and fundraisers. As anxious as I was heading out, the quality of the people who’d been invited had me relaxed enough to head out and explore with new friends before our dinner on Monday. (I even drank on Beale street, which is kind of huge for me being without family/close friends)

Tuesday was the actual summit. We toured the campus, learned so much about what goes on beyond just medical treatment, heard from actual patients, experienced art and music therapy, and learned about ways the team is working to help streamers make the most of the PLAYLIVE season. I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve ever cried so many times in an 8 hour period in my life.

After we’d gotten back to the hotel on Tuesday, we had some time to relax before dinner. (Side note, the Lakers arrived at our hotel during this downtime, so that was interesting, lol) Dinner was a lot of fun outside of the mac ‘n’ cheese line, and after I actually got to talk to someone who’s an inspiration to so many streamers who fundraise.

There may have also been some Destiny talk as well, lol. I do need to thank NachoPanda who waited ever so patiently to take this with my phone. But I think he found a way to occupy his time, based on my camera roll.

There were some other shenanigans after dinner, but those are for a different post. For now, I want to take a moment to talk about something I learned at the summit.

1 in 5 children survived cancer when St Jude first opened. Now it’s over 4 out of 5, in the US. The rest of the world still averages 1 in 5.

St Jude has partnered with the WHO to help bring doctors, training, and medicine to children who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance at survival, so your help is needed now more than ever.

You can donate here: https://donate.tiltify.com/@abrekke/allies-2023-play-live-campaign

And you’ve got a chance to win an RTX 4090! Learn all about it here: https://abrekke.com/st-jude-playlive-4090-giveaway/