RFL Team Sunbeamers Hit Jade

 

 

 The Relay for Life's Team Sunbeamers hit the ground running when the Relay started in February, starting off at Platinum level thanks to some off-season fundraising. But the team didn't rest on it's laurels but continued, with the weekly Moon Dance and some Bid Me events. The efforts paid off, and last night March 30, the team passed the half-million mark, 500,000 Lindens or $2000 US dollars.

 

 We had a great night tonight at the Moon Dance, thanks to all who came. We made Jade level tonight. Bix kept his promise and turned green tonight as well. Can we make emerald this year? I think it may be possible as we even started our events yet.

 

 

 For yours truly, this meant what's become something of a recent Team Sunbeamer's tradition: me changing to a certain avatar for a few days, the green Bilby, which Snowy HunniBunni Lefavre (Skylark Lefavre) dubbed "Bix Bilby" in honor of actor Bill Bixby who stared in "The Incredible Hulk."

"It's not easy being green," but it's just for a few days.

 

Stay tuned for information on later events like the Sunbeamer Air Show and DJ Mattie's Fantasy Faire show.

Bixyl Shuftan

RFL Team Sunbeamers Reach 500,000L, Jade Level

 

On Saturday evening, March 19, the Relay for Life's Team Sunbeamers reached a milestone. It crossed the 500,000 Linden dollar mark, and into Jade level among the teams. 

[2022/03/19 18:08] Bixyl Shuftan: Sunbeamer total, 500,000 L
[2022/03/19 18:08] Lady ƙRen 'Jinx' Flow (Ren Float): yay!
[2022/03/19 18:08] Rita Mariner: Good News Sunbeamers just made JADE!
[2022/03/19 18:08] Alison Flow: woot beamers!!
[2022/03/19 18:08] Sienna (Sienna Thor): Yayyy Sunbeamers!!!
[2022/03/19 18:09] Nance Clowes: edge goes to whichever team can dance like oompa loompas
[2022/03/19 18:09] Arizona Ballinger-Whiplash (Arizona Ballinger): woot Sunbeamers
[2022/03/19 18:09] Lady ƙRen 'Jinx' Flow (Ren Float): LOL

I'd earlier spoken when reached Jade, I'd change into a green avatar. I'd done a green fennec for St. Patricks. But maybe something different this time.

[2022/03/19 18:09] Bixyl Shuftan: Okay, Green Bilby for the rest of the night
[2022/03/19 18:09] Bixyl Shuftan: Snowy calls it "Bix Bilby"
[2022/03/19 18:09] Trader Whiplash-Ballinger (Trader1 Whiplash): WTG Beamers!
[2022/03/19 18:10] Bixyl Shuftan: (guess which actor that's a tribute to?)
[2022/03/19 18:10] Trader Whiplash-Ballinger (Trader1 Whiplash) shakes his head
[2022/03/19 18:11] Bixyl Shuftan: "Bix Bilby" is a play on Bill Bixby. He was Dr. Bruce Banner
[2022/03/19 18:11] Kitty Gumbo (Prettykitty Gumbo): Hulk 

I would post a link to the picture above to RFL volunteer chat.

[2022/03/19 18:30] Sienna (Sienna Thor): Lookin' good Bix!!!
[2022/03/19 18:31] Bixyl Shuftan: Thank you :)

So that was the night my Relay team hit half a million. Next stop, Sapphire. Can we get to Emerald, when I have to own up to another promise when we cross a million Linden dollars? We'll find out soon.

Go Sunbeamers! Go Relay!

Bixyl Shuftan
 

RFL Team Sunbeamers Reach Jade, 500K Lindens

 

Yesterday evening, Tuesday April 20, the Relay's Team Sunbeamers reached a milestone. The total raised in both online and inworld donations hit the 500,000 Linden dollar mark, and into Jade level fundraising. The equivalent of $2000 US dollars. 

By all means, this isn't going to mean the team will slow down. Having just had their bumper car event (which raised 6400), there's one ongoing Bid-Me event with plans for more. And then there's the Air Show, and the weekly Moon Dance and other Bring Your Own Kiosk events. Team captain Rita Mariner plans to get the team to reach to Sapphire level (750,000 L), and beyond.  

Team Sunbeamers is the Relay team of the Sunweavers community, where the SL Newser has it's office.

As of the writing of this article, the Sunbeamers are twelfth (very close to eleventh) among the teams in terms of money raised, with six other Jade teams.  The three Emerald teams (over one million), are Roos With a Dream, Goreans in Relay for Life, and The River of Life. Third highest is Cure Chasers, which is at Ruby level. Second highest at Diamond is Relay Rockers. And the highest, also at Diamond, is Camping For a Cure. So far they've raised over 2,500,000 Linden dollars, or over $10,000 US dollars.
 
Go Sunbeamers! Go Relay!

Bixyl Shuftan
  

Sunbeamers Reach Jade Due To Anonymous Donor

The weekend of May 8-10 was very much a successful one for Team Sunbeamers. On Friday May 8, the day DJ Matt was playing at the Fantasy Faire, an anonymous donor donated a huge amount of Lindens, sending the team past the half million mark, or Jade fundraising level.

"I checked the web site total early today and it was 473,100," Cynthia Farshore told me near the end of the day, "I knew we needed 26900 to make 500k ... which 26900 plus the over totals ...64,968! So just today we racked in just under 65k." Team Captain Rita Mariner would later say, "I am curious as all heck, who pushed us over the hump into JADE. I have no clue and it came as a huge happy surprise to me."

Saturday was the day of the multi-team event at Meli's Maniac's Club Amarantha. The Bring Your Own Kiosk event was a fantastic success for the Maniacs, with over 80,000 Lindens brought in. At one point, they pulled their kiosk down so the other teams there would get more cash. By Monday, their team total would cross the 100K mark to 102,000 Lindens. The Sunbeamers would make a little over 10,000 L at the party.

On Saturday night, the results of Shockwave Yareach and Cyanthia's two "Bid Me" events were totaled at Club Cutlass. It had been expected they would be having a change of appearances for a few weeks, but like with Nydia's event a few weeks ago, there was a last minute surprise. Enough money had been donated in their "stay" kiosks to keep them as is.

CYNTHIA: Goat:   12,200L
                   Fox:     10,000L
                  Wolf:           200L
                 
SHOCKY:    Wolf:    12,200L
                     Fox:       3,060L
                    Goat:   10,001L
                   
TotaL:                        47,661L

Talking to Cynthia, she was a little worried if some people were disappointed at the results, expecting a change. But Rita was happy, saying the team had gotten almost 48,000 Lindens as a result.

As of now, the Sunbeamers have raised 582,100 Linden dollars. And the team still has much to do. There's a special event by the Sunbeamers this Friday at a special location, plus a "Moon Dance" at Sunlight Bay a week from now on Tuesday May 19. Both events are Bring Your Own Kiosk. The team is confident of reaching Sapphire rank, 750,000 Linden dollars soon.

Go Relay!

Bixyl Shuftan

RFL Team Sunbeamers Reach Jade

Although the Relay Weekend was two weeks ago, the last really big event of the Relay season, it wasn't the end of the fundraising season. For Team Sunbeamers, the last couple weeks have been a somewhat anxious question of would they reach Jade level, 500,000 Linden dollars this year, or not. The Relay Weekend resulted in enough donations to get them to 400,000 L. One person sent a donation by check to the Relay for Life in the name of the team on June 8 that would have covered the remaining cash to get to the next level. But the person needed to cash it in and give the Sunbeamer's credit was on vacation. So other people from in and out of the team began donating amounts large and small, including one at least 20,000 L. Finally at 6PM SL time, it was revealed the 500,000 Linden mark, and Jade level, was reached.

For the Sunbeamers, it was one of two crowning achievements, the other being it's campsite award, for 2019. Once again, "the little team that could," despite real life throwing two of it's key members curb balls, had come out with what can only be called a successful year. For yours truly, it was owning up to a challenge. I'd told everyone if we reached Jade, I'd be green for a week. And on that night, I was in the green bilby avatar a friend had christened "Bix Bilby," after "Incredible Hulk" actor Bill Bixby.

So what happens next year? Well, we'll see.

Go Sunbeamers! Go Relay!

Bixyl Shuftan

Over 500K Lindens Raised for Japanese Relief at “Go for Japan”

On the weekend from Saturday March 19 to Sunday Mach 20, the “Go for Japan” fundraiser took place in Gwampa's Dance Camp. Also known as the Pacific Crisis Fund Benefit Concert, the event lasted for over 40 hours involved many musicians, and raised over five hundred thousand lindens for the American Red Cross for their efforts in Japan following the recent earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country.

The event was set up at the four-corner meeting place at four sims, Pango Pango, Zeide Kamp, Gwampa Castle, and Bali Bali. The stage was set up at the Pango Pango corner with the official location of the event at Zeide Kamp (238, 241, 21), even though two other sim corners were available for the audience. Besides dancing around in the grass, one could also sit on some pillows in Bali Bali, or lie on some other pillows floating over Zide Kamp and Gwampa Castle.

There were a few dozen musicians taking part in the fundraiser. Among them were Lyn Carlberg, FunkyFreddy Republic, Lexie Luan, CraigLyons Writer, and more.

On the night of Sunday March 20, the total raised slowly crept up to the half million mark. Finally while Edward Kyomoon was playing, the total amount raised reached 500,000. The sight was greeted with applause and cheers of “Woooot!!” Edward continued to sing, and at the end told the audience, "Thanks for all your generosity, helping out the Red Cross," before handing the stage to Grif Bamaisin, the last musician of the event.

As even the most casual of news readers knows, the earthquake and tsunami wrecked enormous damage to Japan. One estimate of the economic damage puts it as 180 billion dollars. Some entire small villages were wiped out. One estimate puts the number of dead and missing at over 16,000, a toll almost always seen from a disaster striking a Third World country, not one of humankind’s most advanced societies. Curiously unlike previous disasters such as Haiti, there have been few fundraisers in real-life in comparison. With Japan having a debt more than twice the total dollar amount of it’s economy, fundraisers like “Go to Japan” will be a welcome relief.

For a link to the American Red Cross, Click Here.

Bixyl Shuftan