Looking for a game that is fun, educational and gives back? Look no further than board game Continent Race™ by Byron’s Games, created by a kid for kids. During a month-long stay at Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, young Byron, just six years old at the time, was not only receiving treatment for an unexpected illness, he was receiving something else entirely: The inspiration to help kids like him learn and have fun through their hospital stay—and beyond.

The inspiration started with the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and Byron’s growing connection with one of the lead facilitators in Lurie Children’s Family Life Center, a special respite space where recovering patients can engage in fun activities. Together, Byron and Mrs. Ellen Donovan passed the time of his recovery by keeping track of each country’s medals during the Games. What started as a simple distraction in the Family Life Center, turned into the hopeful, focused spirit of recovery. After the Games ended, Ms. Ellen challenged Byron to keep the momentum going: She urged him to create a game based on the flags he’d seen during the Olympics.

Byron took the challenge, and found a growing passion for helping other children find purpose in their own healing while having a little fun along the way. Now, Byron is bringing the game to the hospital and beyond—it’s available for our homes, too. Kids will love how fun and colorful the game is. Shhh…don’t tell them it’s educational. Parents and teachers will love that it offers collaborative learning, encourages problem solving skills and goal achievement, boosts confidence and focused play.

Byron with a little more help from mom is also taking on another challenge to hustle to get more of the games to hospitals after a successful first phase of a Kickstarter campaign that reached its goal in just four days! For phase one, Byron identified 50 hospitals he plans to send games to first. This savvy business kid so far has raised over $8,000 for his dream of producing Continent Race for the public to enjoy along with supplying them to hospitals.

“I’m so excited to get to lots of kids and families, so they can have fun learning the world’s geography as much as I did.”, said eight-year-old innovator Byron from Chicago of Byron’s Games.”I’m even more excited to give back and help entertain kids across the country who are in the hospital.”

The object of the game is to be the player to collect the most country cards from each continent first. Each continent is represented by a different color, so it’s easy to get the hang of the game. For 2 to 5 players, ages 7 and up, country flag cards are dealt to each participant and play begins as each person takes a turn drawing and discarding. The first player to collect the required number of country cards from each continent wins the game! Supporting materials such as maps, mystery continent cards, Antarctica wild cards with special privileges, and an option to do a one-on-one challenge between 2 players add to the excitement. Each game consists of one world map, five continent boards and 208 playing cards. Each game lasts around 30 minutes.

Games will retail for $35. The game is currently available on Kickstarter, under Byron’s Games, where you can keep a game, donate one to a hospital, or both!

In addition to sending the game to as many hospitals as possible through the efforts of the Kickstarter campaign, Byron will also be donating to Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago a subscription to an online educational program that he loves, as well as, his video series called Learn and Explore, in which he conducts interviews with interesting adults and children, who are doing great things—his guests range from Adler Planetarium Astronomer, Mark Hammergren, Field Museum Scientist, Erica Zahnle, and well-known Public Artist, Max Sansing, to Jazz musician Yoko Noge, professional harpist, Katie Ventura, and Slurping Turtle Chef, Rob Hafer.

For more information on Continent Race by Byron’s Games, please visit www.byronsgames.com.

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