Skip to main content

Gamers Win Big For UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals at Extra Life United

Last month, over 300 gamers from around the globe gathered in Orlando to compete in the annual Extra Life United gaming tournament. Extra Life is a digital fundraiser that unites thousands of players around the world in a 24 hour gaming marathon to support their local Children’s Miracle Network Hospital.

Over the course of the two day tournament, gamers had the chance to bring home prize money for their local Children’s Miracle Network hospital. UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals were represented by nine participants who brought home over $8,000 in prize money.

Salesforce Ohana Gives Back

Team Fragforce, the official Extra Life team of Salesforce.com, was well represented at Extra Life United. Fragforce was started by a group of Salesforce Engineers who wanted to put their passion for gaming, along with their companies generous Volunteer Time Off (VTO) program to good use! In their second year, members of Fragforce fundraised over $50K for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, including a two day gaming marathon at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in San Francisco.

Siebren Bakker, the Team Captain of “Fragforce,” was one of two players representing the hospital to make it into the Top 16 Mystery Challenge. Siebren finished in overall 8th place and brought home $2,500 in prize money.

Ben Gray, a Salesforce.com software engineer, spoke on how his connection to Extra Life has grown over the past year:

“The idea of being able to gain a few extra volunteer hours (while doing something I spent far too much time doing anyway), was what initially intrigued me. However, after joining Fragforce and touring UCSF Benioff Hospital, I was awestruck at seeing firsthand how much Children’s Miracle Network and Extra Life do to help these kids, and how our fundraising directly empowers them.”

Siebren Bakker competes in a board game to secure his spot in the top 16.

Team Playing with Fire Continues it’s Winning Streak

Jamie Harder-Cattell from team “Playing with Fire” also represented UCSF in the top 16. This is the second year in a row Jamie has made it to the Extra Life United finals. In 2016 he won second place, earning the hospital $27K in prize money. Playing with Fire is comprised of a dedicated group of Streamers who use their popularity in the streaming world, and big personalities, to give back to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals. Playing with Fire consistently ranks as one of the top fundraising teams in the country and their hilarious antics on screen have earned them a large fan base.

Ryann Weller, Captain of team “Playing With Fire” chats on the official Extra Life stream.

The weekend was a huge success for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals and Children’s Miracle Network.

To sign up or learn more about Extra Life visit https://www.extra-life.org/ or contact Jackie Curran at jcurran@mail.cho.org.