TOPIC: October Origins also Cancelled

I saw on Boardgamegeek.com:
www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/2446039/article/35080791#35080791

Origins sent a letter to exhibitors with additional information at the bottom saying the rescheduled Origins in October was cancelled. The full letter is below, the key sentence is: "Based on the information we are receiving on the likelihood of a second wave of the covid pandemic this fall and uncertainty around of Ohio’s mass gathering restrictions for festival, fairs and events like ours we have made the difficult decision to also cancel the October Origins show".

Quote:The GAMA Board of Directors and Retail Division Board issued the following statement on June 10th:

"To Our Community:

The Game Manufacturers Association believes that Black Lives Matter. We unequivocally condemn racism and violence against people of color. We have been too late in making that statement with force, and we apologize. The injustices of today demand that every person of good conscience make clear where they stand and we wish we had been more proactive, more strident, and more effective with our voices. Innocent people of color are being killed in the streets of the communities where we live, and it is not acceptable.

We cannot responsibly hold our virtual convention, Origins Online, in this setting. Even if it were possible to hold it, it would not be appropriate to do so. So, we are announcing here that Origins Online is cancelled.

The Board must voice its loud thanks to those who worked enormously hard to assemble Origins Online in a completely inadequate window of time. GAMA’s staff worked miracles, publishers hurried to learn new tools, fans took a chance to buy tickets. We could not be more grateful for their efforts, which we see and will not forget.

Every exhibitor, sponsor, and advertiser will be offered a full refund, as will every gamer who purchased a badge.

GAMA will match, dollar for dollar, any exhibitor, sponsor, advertiser, or vendor who donates the amounts they are owed for Origins Online to one of the organizations listed below. It is difficult to predict how many will take this opportunity, but the potential exists for the matched amounts to exceed $100,000, which we wholeheartedly hope will happen. The Board sees this as the next step, but not the final step, in the Association’s journey.

* Black Lives Matter Global Network

* Black Trans Advocacy Coalition

* Columbus Freedom Fund

* The Community Justice Exchange

* The Innocence Project

* NAACP

Further details will be sent to these companies by email in the coming days.

The Board thanks every person whose voice reached us in recent hours and days. It is hard, we know, for those voices to speak when they have so much at stake. We are grateful for your persistence, eloquence, and will.

GAMA’s vision statement is “A game on every table, a table for every gamer.” We commit to working toward that day.

In service,
GAMA’s Board of Directors, and Retail Division Board"

Status of Origins Game Fair in October

GAMA made the decision to postpone Origins Game Fair to October to provide time to evaluate the possibility of holding a tabletop gaming convention in 2020. Based on the information we are receiving on the likelihood of a second wave of the covid pandemic this fall and uncertainty around of Ohio’s mass gathering restrictions for festival, fairs and events like ours we have made the difficult decision to also cancel the October Origins show. We regret the timing of the decision but believe that is better to provide as much notice to exhibitors, event planners and attendees to adjust their schedules and plans for the rest of the year.

Details regarding the options to roll over applicable fees paid to date, and/or refunds, will be posted on our website very soon. Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you again in 2021!

Thanks for posting the notice. Hopefully GAMA will get things in order or some other group steps up for 2021. With so many events being moved in 2021 it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

edwin wrote: Thanks for posting the notice. Hopefully GAMA will get things in order or some other group steps up for 2021. With so many events being moved in 2021 it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

GAMA will never get their act together.

Thank you for letting me know. I did not have a ticket as I planned on volunteering and followed the directions to wait to get my ticket. Origins does not send out announcements to those who have no advance ticket.

Let's all raise a toast to the scientists and cheer them on in their vaccine research. I feel they are are only way back into our beloved True Dungeon.

I had our tickets preordered. No issue with refunds. If anyone runs into issues send me PM and I can send u the email of the person I was talking to