Community provider Crunchbits is organizing a community-wide charity event on LowEndTalk, to be launched later this month.  It’s shaping up to be a big event in our community and we plan to promote it to the hilt.  Rewards for those who donate, publicity for participating hosts, and a lot of money going to a worthy cause.  We don’t have all the details yet, but we got a head’s up and permission to share a teaser with you.

The Charity

The beneficiary is a child-focused charity.  Crunchbits is actively interviewing charities to determine the best recipient, and whoever they choose will be announced at the start of the event.  The charity will be a legitimate 501(c)(3) organization who’ll take all donated dollars and use them to improve child welfare.

@CrunchBits told us:

We’re backing an organization with a proven global reach, an exceptional donation-to-impact ratio, and a flexible mission that allows them to respond wherever help is needed most. No heavy administrative overhead, no marketing bloat, and not specific to the ol’ US of A only.

The Coolness

First, LowEndTalk users who donate will get some really cool swag.  I’ve seen a preview of one of the items and it’s awesome.  This is not virtual hosting credits or anything like that – it’s hands-on sweetness, delivered to your mailbox.  Everyone gets something, and there will be a drawing for even more cool stuff.

Second, Crunchbits will be matching these donations, up to $5,000.  That’s five grand, people!  Wow.  This means every dollar you donate is actually worth $2.

And finally, other providers can participate.  If they donate at a certain level, they get publicity and acknowledgement that they’re helping make the world a better place.

Are You a Provider?

Ping @Crunchbits on LowEndTalk and they’ll fill you in on what’s coming up with this event and how you can participate.  LowEndTalk and LowEndBox will be promoting this event, and we’d love to include your name!

raindog308

Raindog308 is a longtime LowEndTalk community administrator, technical writer, and self-described techno polymath. With deep roots in the *nix world, he has a passion for systems both modern and vintage, ranging from Unix, Perl, Python, and Golang to shell scripting and mainframe-era operating systems like MVS. He’s equally comfortable with relational database systems, having spent years working with Oracle, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.

As an avid user of LowEndBox providers, Raindog runs an empire of LEBs, from tiny boxes for VPNs, to mid-sized instances for application hosting, and heavyweight servers for data storage and complex databases. He brings both technical rigor and real-world experience to every piece he writes.

Beyond the command line, Raindog is a lover of German Shepherds, high-quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop RPGs, and hiking in deep, quiet forests.

His goal with every article is to help users, from beginners to seasoned sysadmins, get more value, performance, and enjoyment out of their infrastructure.

You can find him daily in the forums at LowEndTalk under the handle @raindog308.