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skysweep

Poniverse Staff
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Everything posted by skysweep

  1. Thanks everyone for your contributions so far! its very much appreciated, and I most certainly will hope to see some interesting results in the data later. All information is indeed useful! every story helps build a more comprehensive view for the study. Thank you for completing it! Im more than glad, and its my own little (albeit very different) way of being fandom involved. Well, I am glad that this survey was an interesting return to doing some form of response, thanks for doing it! Definitely, and that is indeed where I started. (I like making headcanons for Equestria a lot). I just saw an opportunity with a rather fandom-friendly professor, and just ran with the idea of doing a pony-themed research paper, aaaand this is where it is. It is going to be effort to process the data, but hopefully the end result will yield interesting insights (and prompt interesting insights) into the community.
  2. Thanks so much for filling it in! And yes, I would hope that the survey is detailed and comprehensive; the faculty at my university were very thorough in making sure it complied with all regulations and gathered all useful information necessary.
  3. Hi all! If you have a bit of time, I would really appreciate a little help. I am doing some academic research on the pony community, and have a survey to gather some data. If you can spare a little time, I would really appreciate if you could fill in the survey. https://tinyurl.com/ponystudy If you have trouble accessing it, try a different browser like Edge and Firefox. Its anonymous, and you dont need an account. Thanks! If you have further questions on it, do send an email to fanstudies@uw.edu and ill get back to you on it. In the meantime, have a little art of my OC Typh processing and displaying the data!
  4. Hi Shimmer. We are in the midst of a lot of behind the scenes work; there will be quite a few things we are doing and trying (since our current methods dont appear to be attracting much attention) but a lot of it is in the air at the moment. I will be coming back in to post when we have further confirmation and information, but do feel free to ask if anything piques your interest. Thanks!
  5. Hi there! If you wish to, we have a small selection currently on Teespring; ordering a shirt off there supports the artist who drew it, Poniverse and the GoG! https://teespring.com/stores/gog-merch-store
  6. Hi! You may wish to take a look here to put that request up:
  7. Hi @Lupus, do you want to shoot me a PM and talk about it? Id be happy to chat with you.
  8. Thats exactly right! And if you dont have artwork to provide, you can ask us to draw one for them! Aww...do you want to talk about it Midnight? Im here, you can PM if you wish.
  9. Hi guys! Firstly thanks to @Jeric for sharing his story about his struggles, and for setting up this post for the GoG. I have a story of my own too; its the reason why I started the GoG. I used to suffer from depression; a lot of family died around the same time as people got into that phase of life where social standing matters a lot, and I wasnt exactly a popular kid. It sucked to be left out all the time, and people just...didnt really seem to care what happened to me or what anyone was doing to me. To a lot of people, it was just being needy and annoying. One of the few people I knew who did care about me when the rest of my family and schoolmates were too busy to care was an aunt I cherished a lot. She didnt care about what others did or said, I was just me. But one day, she fell ill, and it was discovered she had a brain tumor. A couple of days after that, whilst travelling to school, I overhear from the back of the car where they needed to go next after dropping me; the mortuary. It didnt take long to figure out what happened, and it was devastating. I just turned up to school and wept outside a classroom, I couldnt deal with it. But in all that time, not a teacher or a peer cared about what happened, and it all went downhill from there. People stopped talking to me and just simply ignored what was happening, and it reached a point where I was failing academically, with nobody to care and multiple people angry at me. It got too much, and I decided to just..end it. But for reasons I still cant figure out today, even though I was in plain sight in front of dozens of people, climbing over a railing to jump off the building, nobody seemed to give a crap. That was, except for a few bronies in school; they were the only people to step forward and try to convince me not to do it. Everyone else may as well have been a statue. Over the next few months to years, they offered a small, local community I could spend time with, and care about. They drew art, took me to meetups, everything. Then I found this place, Poniverse, by a random Google search, and the rest is history. People here have given me hope and help when I relapsed and needed it most, the people back home cheered me on with everything I did; all from this wonderful community of people, people who give and help others selflessly. It may not have seemed like much, the little random gifts, drawings and messages people sent to me, but it has given me reason to live and has made such an impact on my life. In this spirit, I would just like to ask people to give what they can to help out the many wonderful causes the fandom has. Come by and drop a few bucks into the GoG tin so we can give that support to others. Go and donate to the BC's Children's Hospital, and give a kid spending their holiday in a hospital that sense of warmth and joy. Nothing is more miraculous in the holiday season than to give others the joy we all celebrate each year. Thanks you all for reading, and Happy Holidays!
  10. In some ways, yes, this part of the GoG Subforum is kinda like the Life Advice forum, where people can come to discuss matters and other things that concern them. However we are trying to do a different take on the matter; We are seeking out partnerships with mental health charities, having a formalized channel for people who wish to talk with a helpful group of ponies, and in future (hopefully) offer proper counsel and care for people. The GoG is different in the sense that it is art built around helping others; it started with the intention of having artists draw art for people in distress, and a community they could come to for support. And Bas is right; we are technically separate, but still work very closely with MLPF on many matters. I hope this answers your question and clarifies things. Ping me again if you need more explaination!
  11. Well, we wouldnt be much of a "Gallery" if we didnt have a display of artwork from our various artists! So...whats here? Whats here is a place for the various GoG Artists to come by and add some of their artwork for the GoG to the collection! The artists can put up their artwork in any of the three places we operate (Discord, MLPF and dA), but they are welcome to put their choice pieces in all three. We want to show what the artists have done over time for us, and if the beneficiaries are fine with it, share with others the variety of struggles people have, and maybe, we can show that nopony is alone in whatever they are facing. For GoG Artists, do come by and drop off your pieces here for display. For everyone else, take a gander, enjoy, and celebrate the talent of the artists!
  12. Hi there! This wouldnt be much of a community if there wasnt a place where people can just kick back and chat about anything in general. What is this place? Consider it the central thread for anyone to chat about whatever. If you dont feel like using Discord, or dA, you shouldnt be left out of the party either! There are some awesome people on this forum, and here is a nice place to meet others, chat about life and anything that tickles your fancy. Please do adhere to the standard rules (no NSFW, no bullying, etc) Have fun everypony!
  13. Hi! This is the Peer Support section! If something troubles you, and you feel you need a hoof on the shoulder or a shoulder to cry on, we are here to support you! What is this place? This is where you can come if you need someone to chat to! As of right now, its just me, Sweepy patrolling this section weekly to offer a little bit of comfort as I can. If more people wish to come here and offer their support for their fellow brony, thats awesome! If you like helping people, consider signing up as a peer support volunteer! We will definitely need people like that to offer some support for others. However, given how sensitive these matters can be, this particular thread is no-tolerance for any harassment. There is no grace period, no warnings. Bully anyone for their concerns and its an insta-report. If you wish to chat in PM basis as well, thats entirely possible as well! We are all here for you; I set up the GoG in honor of the friends I lost over the years to mental health problems, and I have been beset by such problems myself. So if you need help, speak out about it. Its the strongest thing you can ever do; and if anyone says otherwise, point them out. I want to give them a slap for not taking it seriously. If you need serious help, there are people trained for this, and can offer a listening ear 24/7. Right now, we are working with these helplines and charities, but there are many in almost every country on earth. Do check, call in and share your concerns. They arent there to diagnose you, they are there to provide care and help. Listed below are some resources of the organizations we were recommended and contacted: Singapore and ASEAN area: Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) +65 1800-221 4444 pat@sos.org.sg Response time for Email Befriending is within 48 hours, excluding weekends and public holidays. www.sos.org.sg United States: Lifeline (800-273-TALK/8255) https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/our-network/ Thanks for reading. Stay safe, be nice, and care for each other.
  14. Hello, and thank you for coming to check out the Gallery of Goodwill. Here, we would like to make clear what we intend to do, laying out our plans, motivations and logic for everypony to see. How does this all work? And what are we here to do? Over time, what we did has changed. In order to cut through the clutter and get to the heart of what this means for all of us, here is our mission statement and what we are here to do! 1. We are here to be a caring community for those who need help in their struggles. 2. We are here to support and promote brony artists and the fandom. 3. We intend to provide a base and foster interest in people contributing to the fandom. How do we intend to achieve this? We make artworks for people struggling with troubles, and open up a community where they can feel cared for. We accept artists and fans of all walks of life and provide a meaningful place to practice their art and make a difference. What can I do to help? - Join in the community! Roam this subforum, join the discord group, or the dA groups! There are always places for people who care and wish to make a difference. - Volunteer! If you have an idea, like drawing, helping others, or just want to help out, we could always use volunteers! - Donate and buy merch! Donations make the whole thing possible, and we give it almost entirely to the artists for their time and work making this all possible, or pass it along to other meaningful brony and mental health causes. Apart for any operational costs, everyone working on this contributes their effort for free. Buy a shirt, support an artist and make everyone's day! Thank you for reading, and have a nice day!
  15. Hi there! Welcome to the official GoG Merch Store! As a non profit, we derive a lot of our funding from the generosity and kindness of individuals. In this spirit, many of our talented artists have decided to work with us to produce merch for everyone to enjoy! The merch can come from a variety of sources, as we tap into the shared skill and expertise of our artist pool! Do browse below for what we have to offer, and do support us by buying a thing or two! All of the funds from the merch, apart from the production overheads is split between a large number of parties who you should definitely support! Firstly; The artist! The dedicated person who drew the artwork you are choosing to buy will get a fair cut of the proceeds from every sale! So this is a wonderful way to support artists old and new in doing something they love! Next; Poniverse, the place you are currently at right now! some of the funds are given to them to help run the many wonderful sites and programs you have come to love! Of course, a cut comes directly to us! We use the money to run programs and pay artists to draw artworks which show our community's support for ponies going through tough times in life; We cannot tell you enough how much this little gift helps! Finally; a portion of the proceeds is set aside to give to other charitable causes, both within and outside the fandom! We believe in sharing the joy of artwork to help others, and nothing says that more than donating a portion of the proceeds to other wonderful causes! Thank you for your time, and I hope you continue to support us! Teespring Fulfilled Merch One of the major ways we provide merch is through Teespring; it allows us to continuously produce and offer different designs on demand, so you are able to get your merch quickly, and we are able to deploy new artworks and merch as soon as we design it! Do check out the store and support us! https://teespring.com/stores/gog-merch-store Other Merch...? We are currently experimenting with a wide variety of other merch offerings; do check back often to see what kind of new concoctions we come up with! Some will be very unique and interesting, so keep your eyes peeled!
  16. Hi! Let me go through your questions point by point. If you do want to join, there is a form here to fill in; we will get to you as soon as possible. https://goo.gl/forms/KyclTrwGI2tCvPdc2 Well we dont really have anything to do with the Goodwill charity. Simply including the word "goodwill" in a name can simply mean that we are just here to help out. Unfortunately, as much as we would like to believe that everyone is here legitimately asking for requests and help, we have seen quite a few instances where people come in looking to score some free art. As we do have a limited number of artists working on limited numbers of requests, letting a less than honorable request slip through takes that opportunity away from someone else. Simply not screening cases isnt an option; it encourages the wrong kind of behaviour and defeats the purpose of having this project to begin with. However, as always there is significant difficulty in balancing the need to ensure art is given to the right people, without it getting in the way of what we intend to do. Thus, no solution we could ever offer would be perfect; there will always be pros and cons to every approach. I know we dont say much, as we are all volunteers who are often busy with IRL stuff, but we are open to suggestions from anyone. Having a pool of ideas helps the process somewhat, and everyone can chip in, in some way. The idea of a sponsor, at least in the way it was conceptualised was to have a specific group of people who do a little investigating into who the request is supposed to be for. For instance, it can be to find out what they like about the show and what needs to be drawn to give them some hope in what theyre facing. They would also try to offer some comfort and personal interaction with people; simply issuing artworks whenever someone faces trouble makes the artwork rather meaningless. In that case, we may as well issue stock pictures with the person's OC tacked on. The intention of having the artwork drawn, by volunteers specificially for them is to encapsulate whatever problem they are going through, and to show that they arent alone in this. Of course its not entirely necessary for the beneficiary to regale the whole story if they do not feel comfortable. However, it does help the process a lot of they are willing to share at least a few aspects or a short summary of what they are going through. If person "A" for instance is facing study stress from school but doesnt want to regale the blow by blow account to a sponsor "B", they can say that they are facing difficulty in school; they do not need to explain why or how any of this came about, just the reality of what they are facing. With that description, the artwork is made far more meaningful than just our OCs hugging theirs, but rather showing a community supporting them through their personal problem, whatever it may be. If they dont want the artwork displayed in public because it makes them uncomfortable, then it can also be kept private; its their artwork after all, and we will respect their decision on it. What this hopes to do in terms of securing the process is to put some roadblocks in the way of the opportunistic dishonorable person; it will require them to get a co-conspirator to agree on a story, who will not be able to get an artwork in return; we do see the vice versa trick in the request records and strike both requests off the list and blacklist them. Faking accounts wont work either; it will tip off a sponsor if the accounts of either the requester or the beneficiary are brand new. Of course none of these measures will deter the dedicated scammer, and they were never meant to. If you put in actual effort to try and scam a charitable project out of an artwork, id wonder why you would stoop to so low a level just to save yourself a couple of bucks when you should be supporting the wonderful talent the fandom has to offer. Sorry for the long answer, but i hope it does address all of your questions. I hope to see you around volunteering soon!
  17. Hi! Firstly, we do have a new space where the GoG is running from, do check it out for some more details. https://mlpforums.com/forum/269-gallery-of-goodwill/ Although its a little administrative, we do need you to use the new links to register your donation. Dont worry, you dont need to re-donate, just log it and I can get it checked out. Also, we never had someone before ask us for an artwork for donating, but I dont see why it cant be accommodated. Ill look into it and get back to you. Thanks for your support!
  18. Hi! Its Skysweep. Just thought I would want to let you guys know if youre interested, I will be at Everfree Northwest next weekend. Ill be there mostly to enjoy the con, but id be more than happy to chat about the GoG if youre there too! I will be wandering about mostly, but if youre intent on finding me, ill be cosplaying as my OC. So just look for the lost looking poni with green wings, a bacon tail and blue/cream mane. Do let me know beforehand if you can so I can find you too (and hopefully not just ambush me on the days themselves, I dont react well to jumpscares. No, it doesnt end well for the jumpscarer) Hope to see some people there!
  19. Hi Everypony! Im Skysweep, coming in from the Gallery of Goodwill. We are back in the swing of things, but we are in a big need of volunteers. Artists, technical people, staff or even just people wanting to chip in and help out, we need everyone and anyone who is interested! Thanks!
  20. Hello everyone! Ive been working hard with my team on the GoG to get it back in the swing of things, and now its back! Come in, support us and find a place! We need every hoof we can get!

    https://mlpforums.com/forum/269-gallery-of-goodwill/

  21. Hello! This is the more formal side of the GoG, and is meant to show transparency in our operations and social responsibility as a non profit. As we intend to be fully responsible for all that we do, this section is dedicated to any public release documents we might have for you. Right now we only have a public balance sheet, but if there is any other processes that need transparency, we will put it up here. Thanks for your interest, and we hope to see you around!
  22. Hi! Thanks for considering donating to our cause! We run purely of the donations of people to keep this project running. Thus, we ask that people provide whatever support they can to keep our vision alive. You can donate outright using this link below: https://goo.gl/forms/Zws06Qo0cfaF2qGX2
  23. So, you want to volunteer with us? Firstly, thank you! We can use all the help we can get. We have a few ways you can contribute. Opportunity for everyone! Take a look and fill in the form below if youre interested in any of the roles. Thanks! NB: Do note that taking on a staff role demands a significantly larger commitment than that of a volunteer. Think carefully of how much you can contribute, not just what you can bring before choosing. Both are fulfilling in their own ways. Another thing to note: Volunteering is very flexible, and can vary based on your IRL commitments. Helping out in your spare time is a good way to start, and you can help people and get involved in a GoG community! Volunteering Form: https://goo.gl/forms/KyclTrwGI2tCvPdc2 Volunteer roles: What kind of people we look for in volunteering: We are looking for a wide variety of people to chip in and help! Any range of skills are useful; however the roles we will primarily need will fall into these four key categories: PR and Outreach: We always need good people who are able to communicate and maintain relations with other people and organisations, as well get people knowing and interested in what we are doing! if you are a kind of person who likes or has experience in PR, communicating, making ads or other interpersonal skills, or simply talking to beneficiaries who need someone to help, do give an application in today! Fundraising and Events Planning: As we are a group who runs solely off donations, we do need to be able to find and gather funds to run our events and organisation. Thus, we are always on the lookout for people who are able to run events, both IRL and in the internet, as well as help in various means of gathering funds. If you feel that your style is helping organise or searching for bits between the couch cushions, this is the place for you! Site Maintainance and Moderation: As always, keeping an effective operation running is difficulty without help; There are systems to manage, processes to handle, and sites to admin and moderate. This means we are always on the lookout for people who are able and willing to chip in with helping run the place day to day! If you have some spare time to help research, moderate, manage or otherwise check up and help in things in general, this might be the best for you! Drawing: The heart of the GoG is the pool of artists who draw everything from requests to merch and more, we are always on the lookout for new artists looking for a place to try and grow their art talent, or perhaps a place to showcase their awesome work! We are always open to artists new and old dipping their hooves in, and we encourage them all to apply and join in! Peer Support: We need people who are willing to be there for others! It helps when there is always somepony to reach for and who cares about you, and we do need a pool of ponies ready to step up and offer some care and concern for others! If this sounds like you, come on in! Staff: If you are experienced, and have the ability to chip in your own special ways to the GoG, we are looking for staffers to help run the place! We will be a lot more selective in terms of staff selection, and you have to apply for specific roles. We prefer if you have prior experience in the field you are applying for, but being skilled in the field with references and evidence would be hugely helpful. To apply, PM me directly after reading this list of roles and seeing which available ones you wish to apply for: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19cmJ5oot9OLiWM1yn6nQ43OPKIK21N1V4oV31bMmZC8/edit?usp=sharing
  24. Hi! Welcome to the art requesting side of the GoG. If youre wondering what this is all about, perhaps you should take a look at our main page! Itll give you the info you need. We were initially founded to do something good with fandom artists. We would get artists to make a gift for someone in need, and give it to them in the hopes of cheering them up. If you feel someone in your life might need this little boost of happiness(be it from health issues or life troubles), youve come to the right place. You can put in a request using the form below: https://goo.gl/forms/Dsi2rMyLIQXSMcYH2 Once thats done, a Sponsor will swing by and talk to you about it so we can learn more about the situation and how best to approach it. This then goes over to an artist (staff or volunteer) to be drawn. Youre welcome to use the thread below to discuss requests in general, but remember that you MUST use the form above to make a request. It will not be counted if you make the request in this thread. Thanks for your interest, and we hope you have a good day ahead! Before you go, here are some FAQ's to help answer your questions: Can I request for myself? Thats not being kind to others. -w- Can I request since my friend wants free art? Sure. Here is one for you. Click the link. (https://goo.gl/W8Lg7X) Is it free? If the request is legitimate, yes. However, we do appreciate donations so others can have the same opportunity. I enjoy drawing/contributing and feel this is a good cause, how can I help? Please read the Volunteering thread for more information. How is this funded? We run purely off the generosity of people who believe in our project. Every cent and dollar counts, so do donate so we can continue helping others! ( https://goo.gl/forms/Zws06Qo0cfaF2qGX2) Who runs this? This project is run with the support of Poniverse and a amazing group of volunteer staff and artists. Any other questions can be directed at the designated GoG staff.
  25. Hello, and welcome to the Gallery of Goodwill! We hope youll enjoy your stay. So what exactly do we do? What we are here to do is to do good things with this community we love so much, and hope we can inspire others to do the same! Scattered throughout the different threads are the different topics on things you might want to know about this project, and enough space to discuss it. It doesnt matter if youre an artist, a potential beneficiary or someone who thinks this is a cool idea, there is space for everyone here. Thanks for your time, and I hope you will stay and help us in our journey to help others! This thread is here for announcements, important guidelines and stuff like that. If you want to partake in the GoG, we will assume you read everything in here since all the really important stuff goes here. Just a few things to note. We have just a few guidelines on how to act around here. Some youll have seen on MLP Forums, some are more specific to us. But in general: Respect others and be kind (i.e don’t be mean) Be fair about requests (don’t beg or harass for them, don’t be selfish) No NSFW or other 18+ stuff or links to them Do not bring arguments or fights and/or start them here. If you have issues, bring it up with a staff member (Do not abuse them). Community staff/Poniverse staff have final say in what is and isn’t appropriate. Keep to these and youll be fine. Thanks, and we hope to see you around! So what are we up to now? We are finding new ways to reach out! There is so much we wish to do, and we are discussing how we can do that to reach more people! We also are looking to partner with various mental health charities around the world; helping people struggling with difficult times is what we are set up to do!
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