TheRunningManZ’s two 16-hour fundraising stream-a-thons were inspired by his own experiences with his father.
Feelgood Friday: The Inspiring Tale of DayZ Streamer TheRunningManZ
Written by Ollie Bradley at 02/03/2023, 08:07 AM
Raising money for a good cause is always a reward in itself. But DayZ streamer TheRunningManz managed to earn a lot more than that after raising tens of thousands for a dementia charity: the admiration of his father.
TheRunningManZ is a popular streamer with over 408k subs on YouTube and 205k followers on Twitch. And recently he completed two separate 16-hour charity livestreams to the tune of £72,000 (around $88,100). All of which went to the UK's leading dementia research charity, Alzheimer's Research UK.
TheRunningManZ, whose real name is Paul, was inspired to carry out the fundraising streams by his father, Albert, who was living with dementia around the time of his first stream on December 12th 2021. It ended up pulling in 120,000 views and raised £40,800.
After telling his father about the success, Albert responded by telling Paul he was "very proud". Which was one of the last things Paul's father ever said to him, as he tragically passed away in January 2022.
This drove Paul to set up another stream in December 2022, which ended up raising a further £31,000 for Alzheimer's Research UK. Though Paul had expected this year's stream to raise less than the first, thanks in no small part to the cost of living crisis in the UK, it's safe to say that his £20,000 target was suitably smashed.
"I was amazed at the response to this year's stream. We had more viewers watching than the year before and even more shared personal stories of family members who had or are living with dementia," said Paul, reflecting on the amount of viewers of both streams who were going through a similar experience.
"I do think there is some real benefit to these streams in terms of the awareness it raises for dementia and the research that is needed. Bring on 2023!"
Whatever Paul has planned for 2023, it's fair to say that the year is off to a running start. From the incredible $2.6million raised by this year's Awesome Games Done Quick, to smaller yet no less awesome efforts like the Gaming Grandpa's 24-hour livestream, we hope that this is the start of a big year in charity gaming.