A Community That Cares
In May 2011 we put out a call for help, asking our community to rally together to raise just over $2,000 in order to pay a year's worth of electric bills for a family in need. Not only did we meet this goal, we were literally overwhelmed by the support that came pouring in. Below you will find the funds that were donated, and how they were used to help this family in need.
Thank you, Crossroads friends/family, for your generosity and outpouring of compassionate action toward others!
What We Accomplished Together
| Item Paid |
Total Amount | Duration of Bill Coverage |
| Electricity | $2,220 | One year |
| Garbage Service | $360 | One year |
| Oil Bill | $1,982 | Past-due bill, plus full tank |
| Phone Bills | $807 | Past-due bill, plus current charges |
| Emergency Chimney Repair | $212 | Indefinite |
| 10th Anniversary Celebration for Scott/Heather | $150 | Indefinite |
| Holiday Celebration Fund for Auden Family (3 children) | $793 | 2011 Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays |
In order to get as much money as possible to the family, Alliance Crossroads matched the PayPal fees for each transaction, donating $174.
Total amount donated: $6,523.51
While Alliance Crossroads is no longer administering a charitable fund for the Audens, there are still other ways to help!
From Sam Norman, a longtime friend of the Auden Family:
Dear friends;
This past April, Scott Auden, father of two young children suffered a brain aneurism which leaves him in need of intensive therapy and unable to work. This tragedy leaves the family without an income. And here is where you can help. We, concerned members of the community, are committed to trying to raise funds so that the youngest child can attend a full day of learning. This will allow the mom to focus on assisting her husband receive his therapy during the school day. An anonymous program here in Colchester has offered a slot for the youngest child in their half-day kindergarten program and is willing to reduce the cost by half. The total cost for the program for the entire school year is $4,800.00. Our goal is to raise $2,400.00 – one-half of the cost of the tuition. It would be greatly appreciated if you would consider a donation in any amount in support of this child/family.
Donations can be made directly to:
Auden Education Fund
C/O First Niagara Bank
P.O. Box 415
1372 Main St.
Coventry CT. 06238.
You can reach me directly with questions by calling me at 860-498-0559 or Jackie Somberg (Principal of Colchester Elementary School) at 860-537-0717
Thank you for your consideration.
Sam Norman
The Call for Help: May 2011
The Story
Scott Auden is a father, an actor, a teacher, a longtime LARPer and a writer - and more than that, he's also a great guy. In April 2011, Scott was rushed to a local hospital for emergency brain surgery due to what's known as an AV Malfunction. In layman's terms, he has had a condition since birth that manifested unexpectedly in his brain, and nearly killed him.
In the short weeks since that time, Scott has struggled out of a coma and has begun the very long road to recovery. His rehabilitation may take a year or longer before he is able to return to work and continue providing for his family.
As it happens, Scott is not eligible for long term disability and his short term disability insurance only pays half his salary... and he is only eligible for that for the first 100 days. While he happily does have health insurance, Scott's family is left with a crushing number of bills they simply will not have the funds to pay.
The request
Alliance Crossroads has been proud to call Scott a member of our community since our first event. He has been one of our greatest supporters, and now we want to support him in return. We are asking all of our community members and players to donate to a fund we are establishing with the sole purpose of handling the Audens' monthly electric bill for the coming year.
Their bill is $185/month on a budget plan. To cover this for 12 months, we will need to raise at least $2220. Will you help us?
The Offer
Any Alliance player that donates specifically to this fund will receive 2GS/dollar donated, usable in the Alliance Crossroads campaign. We will be covering the PayPal fees - so the exact amount you donate will be the amount that is paid to make sure Scott, his wife Heather, and their children are able to make it through this difficult transitional period.
UPDATE: Alliance Connecticut has generously offered to match the goblin stamps you are receiving at Crossroads for your donations. Now, for every dollar you donate, Alliance players will receive 2GS in Crossroads and 2GS in Connecticut. In addition, each donor that completes a donation prior to the end of June will be entered in a drawing for one of their Tier 5 Wellfire packages.
