Streamer and content creator Benjamin “DrLupo” Lupo joined the ranks of streamers who’ve raised ten-digit figures for charity in 2022. Lupo is one of many gaming content creators using their platform to raise money for charity. As of his most recent Build Against Cancer (BAC), he’s raised a cumulative $13 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital over the five years he’s held the event.
During BAC, Lupo plays various games, such as Minecraft. 2022 marks the first time he livestreamed the event at the St. Jude campus in Memphis, where he interviewed and gamed with multiple guests, including other content creators and St. Jude patients.
Build Against Cancer 2022 raised over $1 million for the hospital. Lupo told GamesBeat in an interview that this marks his most social BAC so far. “The biggest thing for me was having so many people there in person. I’ve become accustomed to doing things like Build Against Cancer basically alone in my studio. It was jarring — in a good way — to have so many people around all working to make the event what it was. Couldn’t imagine doing BAC on my own again.”
While the symbiosis between gamers and charity predates the pandemic, there was a clear uptick in giving during that time. Lupo himself raised $4 million for St. Jude in BAC streams held through 2020 to 2022. The Games Done Quick organization raised $9.3 million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation (via Awesome Games Done Quick) and $8.3 million for Doctors Without Borders (via Summer Games Done Quick). Jacksepticeye raised $22 million for various charities via his Thankmas events during that same time period.
According to Lupo, gamers can help in other ways besides money: “Spreading the word about what we’re doing for St. Jude via gaming is the most powerful method of supporting when financial contributions aren’t possible. Not everyone can donate, which is totally fine. But even Danny Thomas said he’d rather get $1 from a million people instead of a million dollars from one person. That can only happen when others hear about what St. Jude is trying to do.”