At it’s heart 2D Con is a charitable event run by a team of dedicated volunteers, this allows us to give as much as we can back to the community and those in need.

Each year we host various charitable events during the convention such as silent auctions and raffles. Our main donations come from viewers of our Twitch stream, and from our over 3000 attendees.

Since 2D Cons inception in 2015 we have raised more than $100,000 for various charities, and we have no plans on slowing down. We firmly believe that gamers are one of the most charitable communities around. Through charity livestreams, fundraising campaigns, and volunteer work, gamers demonstrate their unwavering commitment to supporting causes they believe in.

2024 Charity Partner

2D Con’s official charity partner for 2024 is Guild.

Guild is a not-for-profit (501c3) organization that offers integrated mental health, housing, and employment services to individuals living with mental illness and/or experiencing chronic homelessness.

We feel very passionate about this cause.

Get to know Guild

Mental illness is common—1 in 4 adults live with it. At Guild, we believe this is nothing
to be ashamed of. We also believe it shouldn’t be a barrier to finding safety, security,
and community.

What We Do

Health

• We provide community-based, comprehensive mental health services including
  ACT and Youth ACT, community support programs (CSP), intensive residential
  treatment, care coordination, crisis stabilization and more.
• 95% of individuals leaving their home to be admitted for short-term crisis
  residential services stabilized their situation without high-cost hospitalization.

Housing

• Through street outreach work, housing stabilization services, and ongoing case
  management, we help individuals find safe housing in communities of their
  choosing.
• 81% of housing clients obtained/maintained housing.

Jobs

• We partner with our community to help clients, both adults and youth ages 16 to
  24, secure and maintain gainful employment.
• 70% of individuals in our Employment Program obtained work experience.

Who We Serve

We serve individuals 14 years and older who live with serious mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder. Half of our clients have a co-occurring disorder, which means they also manage a medical condition or substance use disorder. Our services aim to prevent homelessness, unemployment, the use of high-cost emergency rooms and hospitalization services, and involvement in the criminal justice system.

• “On any given day, 480 services are provided to our clients in the Twin Cities
• metro area”
• 386,574 miles travelled by our team members to offer our services

Our four facilities welcome clients from a seven-county metro area. This includes Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington County!

Why It Matters

We provide a spectrum of services because mental illness is different for everyone, and
everyone is worthy of shelter, connection, and stability. Mental health, housing and
employment supports matter to our individual clients, and they matter to communities
and to taxpayers. For instance, according to the Minnesota Hospital Association, the
current average per day charge at urban hospitals for psychosis is $4,036. Alternatively,
the Guild South daily rate is $555 and Guild Crisis & Recovery Center, Scott County is
$529.

• Bash
• Careers
• Community Access

Our history

Our roots date back to the 1970s, when the Hastings State Hospital closed and left
patients without a place to go. Volunteers from the Guild of Catholic Women stepped up
to provide housing for the most vulnerable patients, those with a serious mental illness.
Although we started as a Catholic volunteer organization, mental health issues aren’t
confined to any faith, race, age or gender, so we became an unaffiliated nonprofit, in

1990. Today, we serve clients across the metro area. We’re opening a new Crisis and
      Recovery Center in partnership with Dakota County, and our Crisis and Recovery
      Center in downtown Savage is the first and only residential mental health treatment
      facility in the southwest metro.
      In 2023, we served 2,1850eople.

• 88% reported that they were satisfied with the services we provide.
• 79% of clients were housed.
• 69% of individuals served are employed

So, it’s not surprising that Charity Navigator, an independent organization that evaluates
nonprofits, gives Guild a 96% score, and 4 out of 4 stars.