We are back highlighting another amazing dungeon master in our community. This month we are pleased to shine the spotlight on Andrea Driedger. She is a local event organizer and business owner that make runs charity events that have RPG inspired themes. We sat down with her and asked her what her inspiration was for these events:
"Fundraising has always been something close to my heart. Even the smallest amounts fundraised can have a big impact for important causes; I saw this first hand in my years working for a non-profit organization. I'd wanted to do a charity D&D event for a while, since what could be better than taking my hobby and doing some social good with it? An opportunity came up at my old job to do personal fundraising for our organization, and it seemed like a good fit. My colleague Brianna and I teamed up to put the event together, and it was a smashing success, raising $1,400 to support children and youth from foster care and adoptive families. These days I do a fair bit of fundraising for the Canadian Cancer Society and BC Cancer Foundation because I'm a cancer survivor. My husband and I run an online dice shop, and in the spring we feature an Andrea's Adventurers dice set with all of the profits from the sale of that set going to cancer research and supports for cancer patients and their families."
Using the power of role-play is a great way to strengthen our community and Andrea is a perfect example of that. However, we still have some ways to go, luckily, she isn't stopping any time soon:
"I'd love to create a yearly event. Something that people look forward to, and we can consistently plan for and organize, that can have a positive impact for local charitable organizations. A space that is welcoming to new players, but also offers something for experienced players. The RPG community is hugely supportive and there's this desire to make an impact, so why not harness that passion to put some good in the world. I'm pretty passionate about getting more things going in the Fraser Valley. The community out here is so supportive and awesome, and generally we don't mind traveling into the city for things. But it would be nice for us to have something closer to home. The success of our local game cafés I think is proof there's a desire for more community to be created out here."
We would like to say thank you to Andrea Driedger and all of the amazing work she is doing and things she will accomplish.