OTTUMWA —
Two years ago, Ottumwa’s Video Game Hall of Fame hosted the popular “Big Bang,” which lead to the expansion of video game events in Ottumwa.
One example is the Grassroots Gaming Expo, which started last year after some video game players discovered the second Big Bang was postponed.
“We wanted to give the people that were already planning on coming to Ottumwa an event to go to,” said co-founder Liz Bolinger. “I know a lot of gamers were broken-hearted because Big Bang was postponed. We wanted to show people a gaming event could happen.”
At first, Liz and her husband Josh invited about 20 friends to play video games at their house. When word got out, more friends, acquaintances and friends of friends wanted to play, too. And, said the Bolingers, knowledge of the Big Bang event helped keep gamers’ attention on Ottumwa. In fact, the “grassroots” players had to rent a hall.
“It far exceeded what we expected. There were only going to be 20 of us at the beginning. We had 300 people,” Bolinger said. “And the original 20 now make up most of the staff for the grassroots event.”
Which is good, she said, because those people are all gamers themselves.
“This is for the gamers, by gamers,” she said. “I think to a certain extent, it’s always going to be grassroots because it’s always going to be friends and family running it. I want it run by gamers themselves, and the gamers who are attending will have a say in it.”
Even the business owner of their title sponsor, Ottumwa Decal, is a gamer who is scheduled to attend the event and to work as a volunteer.
But non-gamers have come on board, too. Organizers believe people in the community get behind them because they know how hard they work.
Last year, the Holiday Night ‘N Lights committee donated the use of a huge number of extension cords and has promised them again this year — something that makes a real difference financially and emotionally, Bolinger said.
“It’s awesome that people believe in us,” she said. “We’ve been getting a lot more support this year because they saw what we did last year. Last year, we totally paid off Bridge View, and we already have Bridge View paid this year through our Grassroots Gaming Expo title sponsor.”
They’ll be having a fundraiser to pay for other parts of the event, like equipment rental, bringing in technical staff from out of town and other “infrastructure” needs. Last year, they broke even, but if there’s extra this year, she said, it’ll go toward next year’s event and toward filing the paperwork to become a nonprofit entity.
And there’s a silent auction fundraiser that will only raise awareness of the Grassroots Gaming Expo because the proceeds will go to Child’s Play, a charity that makes toys available to hospitalized children, Bolinger said.
There are also sponsor and donor packages that both raise money for the event and get players some exclusive items.
Grassroots organizers already have lined up arcade machines, tournaments, game-related movies and more prizes than last year. And though it may sound counterintuitive to non-gamers, the “bring your own computer” area is going to double in size this year.
“Instead of meeting online, they can sit together with their friends and play. The [public] might see gaming as antisocial. But that’s a stereotype. We come to events like this not so much to just play the games but to see each other — and play the games,” Bolinger said.
Donor packages can be viewed at indiegogo.com/grassrootsgamingexpo.
The Iowa Grassroots Gaming Expo 2012 will be October 12, 13 and 14 at Bridge View Center, Ottumwa. Find more information, including a contact link, at GrassrootsGamingExpo.com.
Local News
August 9, 2012
Game on: By gamers for gamers, Grassroots Gaming Expo gaining momentum
- Local News
-
-
To the Skies
OTTUMWA -- Ottumwans will turn their eyes to the sky this weekend as hot air balloons float above the city. The 36th annual Ottumwa Pro Balloon Races kicked off Wednesday night with carnival rides, Ottumwa Shrine Club's barbecue pork dinner, Ottumwa
-
Pheasant population outlook 'dismal'
OTTUMWA — Hunters may have some trouble finding pheasants this fall. Pheasant numbers are expected to decline this year, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. "Following a harsh winter, which is what we had, combined either singly or
- Keosauqua council to consider hotel renovation project KEOSAUQUA — Owners of a Keosauqua business have approached the City Council in regards to a major project involving the Hotel Manning. John and Sonia Stookesberry have owned Village Cup and Cakes for the past 10 years and started Starwest Cable in th
- City to purchase radios, antennas OTTUMWA — New communications equipment will soon sit atop the Memorial Park water tower. At its meeting Tuesday night, the City Council approved the emergency purchase of new radios, antennas and related equipment to be secured on the water tower. Af
-
New communications tower assembled
OTTUMWA — Ottumwa's newest 250-foot structure was constructed in just more than four hours.
-
Storefronts to get a big facelift
OTTUMWA -- A fresh set of facades in one city block could build momentum for the revitalization of downtown Ottumwa. The city has received conditional approval for a $500,000 grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority's downtown master facade
-
Tenco productivity increases thanks to new equipment
OTTUMWA — There's nothing like good partners who team up and improve the world around them. Tenco Industries and John Deere Ottumwa Works have teamed up to improve the way Tenco workers handle all the containers they receive for recycling and other
-
Date set in Pam Ward retrial
A date has been set for the retrial of former Ottumwa Transit Authority Director Pam Ward.
-
SLIDESHOW: Communications tower assembled
Crews assembled the new 250-foot communications tower Tuesday in just more than four hours.
-
Body of Fairfield boy recovered
FAIRFIELD -- Authorities in Montana say they have recovered the bodies of a grandmother and two grandchildren after the car they were in rolled into the Clark Fork River, including that of a Fairfield resident. Authorities were called Friday after a
- More Local News Headlines
-
