VR, old-school Nintendo, Blind Bob’s, and enough raffle prizes to make your head spin: it’s a party. Better than that, it’s a gala.
The official Dayton Geek Gala comes to Blind Bob’s in the Oregon District this Saturday at 7 pm “The Legend of Geek Gala” makes its return to Dayton with a Legend of Zelda theme and trust me: you’ll want to be in attendance.
The event is the brainchild of Dayton resident Josher Lumpkin — a neonatal nurse with a passion for community and all things geek. The gala hopes to bring a taste of the convention culture home to Dayton, providing a one-stop hangout for anyone geek enough to enjoy it. The inaugural 2017 effort brought in nearly $3000 for the Extra Life foundation and was such a success Josher was forced to relocate into a larger venue. It’s a party from wall to wall, with games, raffles, and fellow geeks packing in to Blind Bob’s.
Come for the chance to win some one-of-a-kind Star Wars raffle prizes. Come for the chance to get your hands on the red-hot Nintendo Switch (including some of the latest and greatest games provided by Nintendo rep Ron Martin). Come for the chance to prove that through all these years of PS-whatever’s and Oculus-nonsense, you are still the undisputed king of Double Dragons, or the true master of the SNES. There’s something for everyone.
Photo by Larry Peck Photography — with Jenner Lumpkin, Josher Lumpkin and Katey Mermaid, Ohio’s First Mermaid at the 2017 Geek Gala.
Be wary: while the drinks, raffle prizes, games are open to all who walk through the door, only the truest of geeks dressed in costume will get the cool $5 discount on the $10 cover charge. Not only that, but a costume contest — with prizes for the winners of course — will be held by Through the Ages Fabrics’ own Scott Bradley, and judged by Susanne Kern from The Human Race Theatre Company, Mary Stephens a competitive cosplayer, and Matthew Smith from Ohio Renaissance Festival.
Whether it’s that dusty Zelda outfit in your closet you’ve been aching to show off since you splurged for it two Halloween’s ago, or the ever-nagging thought of finally making your way to Through the Ages Fabrics to see how good you’d look in a Dr. Who get-up: now is your chance. Geek out, and geek out hard.
Rachel Morris of Hawthorne Hill Photography will be snapping photos of attendees in all their geek glory, so get your camera poses ready.
“It’s just a celebration of whatever you’re into” Josher describes, “and even if you’re not into that… it’s just fun. Who doesn’t like a costume party?” Good question.
As mentioned above, all proceeds will be donated to the Dayton Children’s Hospital through the Extra Life foundation. Partners Absolute and Tito’s vodka will be donating $1 and $3 respectively for every drink ordered.
For more information on the event, and to find all the names of the people who make this event possible, head over to the event’s Facebook page here. And if you can’t make the event but want to support the cause, fret naught! Head over to the event’s Extra Life donation page here!
It’s a party, it’s a community, and like any true Dayton event, it’s all in good fun to help those around us.
Prizes, costumes, games, and a good cause: what more could you need?
