Here is what some of the kids had to say about it and, say to the sponsors who made it happen:
Mark Gabriel Infanger (13 years old):
"My favorite thing was the computer game room! I also liked the role-playing games because I got to meet two new friends, Todd and Marky. Todd is a smart kid and is really good at role-playing games. Marky is only ten but he is really smart too. My other favorite thing was that I got to play games with my dad at the convention and that was cool!
"I also wanted to thank all you people that helped us to be able to go. My dad told me that there were a bunch of people from Citysearch and Disney and his doctor and a secret "shadow" sponsor too. I was really surprised to hear that. I am very happy and glad to know that there are really nice people out there who helped us to go to the convention. I really, really, REALLY had a good time and want to say thank you to everybody. THANK YOU!!!"
Zack Allen (15 years old):
"The convention was COOOOOL! Quest Club Yeah! The games were awesome! Especially Big Zack's D&D games! He is a really good GM and makes the games really funny. I want to go to another one sometime.
"It was really nice of all of you people to sponsor our trip like that. Thank you for the trip and thank you for the dice!" (We used some funds to buy the kids a memento gift. Zack chose a set of dice and dice bag).
Lars Pitone (13 years old):
"Playing the games was really a lot of fun. I liked the D&D and the computers. We teamed up in Unreal Tournament and did really well. We met new friends too. It was cool.
"I can't believe so many people wanted to help pay for us to go. I want to say thanks for letting me go to the con. It was great."
That's the short of it. I'm writing up more details about what we did and how things went, I'll post it up when I'm done. For now, I wanted to make sure you all knew that we (the kids, the club and especially me) truly, truly appreciate your help and thank you for your sponsorship!
Pictures from our trip to Gamex 2005!
"The Team"
(Left to Right) Lars, Zack and Mark. The boys were really psyched up about this trip.
They were also excited about representing our club with their new Quest Club T-shirts - stylin'!
"Hitting the Road"
Here we are, on our way out of town. That's me, Big Daddy Zack (driver), my son Mark (front passenger), QC applicants The Other Zack (behind driver) and his brother Lars (right-side passenger). You may notice the reflection in the driver's window. That's my wife Teresa. She didn't want me to take a picture of her for this. Go figure - she gets one of herself - gotcha! And with that, we're off to the convention!
"Moving In"
Mark Gabriel happily displays the most important item
we've brought - the goodies!
"Who gets the bed?"
The room had two beds and a couch. Of course, Big Daddy Zack got one. But, who gets the other one? And, who gets the couch. The kids decided to engage in a three-way "Magic" card tournament to decide this. I think Zack cam in first place and Markie came in second. Lars got whooped.
"The Marks"
We made some new friends at this convention. Here are a couple of them:
Let me introduce you to Mark (left), Mark (top center) and Mark (lower right).
Who would have thought!
"Game On!"
The kids get together for their first D&D game of the convention.
As you can see, the caffine may have been a bad idea on my part.
"Checking In With Mom"
After the first day came to an end, we headed back up to our room. Mark calls his mom to check in and say good-night. I snap this quick picture without his being aware. This sneak attack resulted in this next picture...
"The dreaded Scowl of Doom"
My son gives me the evil eye for taking a picture of him unawares. Oh well, I'm the dad so I get away with it! Hehehehe.
"Bedtime"
End of the first day. The kids hit the hay. Mark and Lars are out cold (more to come on that) but Zack isn't quite done gaming yet. Even though the convention games don't start up again until the morning, he's got some GameBoy to wrap things up!
"The Good..."
Day two brings with it the arrival of long-time Quest Club member Corbin "Speedy E" Ebert. He's here as a mentor member to show his support for the club (and he loves D&D - he's as much a nerd as the rest of us!)
"The Bad..."
Another long-time Quest Club member, Alfred "Player" Bowman. Like Corbin, he's come down to show support. Don't be fooled by appearances, he's a geek too (what you don't see is that he's reading up on which D&D games he wants to play).
"..and the Ugly"
This is Mike "UK" Hyde. He's also down to show support (and nerd-up for the weekend). As with Corbin and Alfred, he's been a Quest Club member for years - ever since moving out here from Wales, Britain (hence the nickname).
"Old Friends"
Can you believe it? In their 30's and still playing games. How sad. See - they're wearing con badges. I'm just baggin' on them - I love to kidd the guys. Who am I to talk? I'm just like them. Gaming is for the young, the old, everyone with an imagination! Alfred, Corbin, Mike and I have been QC members for years, friends for years and continue to play D&D together to this day. These are great guys - true backbone of the club kind of people.
"New Friends"
Zack introduces us to Todd, our new friend. He's a smart kid and good gamer too!
"Solving puzzles"
A big part of gaming (especially role-playing games like D&D) is figuring out clues and mysteries. As you can see here, the guys are a bit perplexed. Mark (center-left) has been joined on this adventure by Corbin (center-right), Todd (far right) and Dan (far left). We met Todd and Dan at the convention. They were great people and we hope they join our club!
"The Other Side of the Equation"
Lars and Zack were in this second game as well. As you can see, their brains are working hard. Don't worry - they eventually figured it out and fun was had by all (even though they didn't win the game and barely escaped the enemy lair by the skin of their teeth)!
"Critical Hit!"
After figuring out the puzzle and getting into the enemy lair, Markie rolls the dice...
BAMO! A critical hit! He nailed the bad guy - excellent! That was pretty much the end of their good luck in this session though. Shortly thereafter they ran out of time and had to flee. Still, the game was fun. All the games were fun throughout our time at the con.
"Saying Good-bye"
The convention over, the bags packed - we ready ourselves for the trip home.
"Mission Accomplished"
With the kids safely returned home and my car parked, I kick-back and reflect on the past few days.
The kids, the mentors and myself had a really good time and hope to do it again someday. On behalf of the kids (Mark, Zack, Lars) and myself - thank you for supporting our club and helping to make this event a success!
Thanks for making it happen!
