Truman Goes to Japan!

Truman Cho is organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Hello everyone, it's your favorite friend, nephew, cousin, and grandson, Truman Cho!

As most of you know, I am currently a sophomore attending Brooklyn Tech High School, in New York City.

Recently, I took a leap of faith and applied to a 3 week study abroad program in Kyoto, Japan and was accepted! I am very excited to have been given this opportunity, but I’m honestly a bit nervous about the trip as well. While this does sound very fun and exciting, being in a new, unusual place all alone is intimidating. I have never travelled alone away from my family, let alone on the other side of the world, but I believe I am up for the challenge.

I've always been interested in video games and technology, but I’ve found I am more interested in how the games work rather than just playing them for fun. Since elementary school, I’ve been teaching myself coding and making my own small scale video games. I think this trip to Japan is an amazing opportunity to not only fuel my passion, but to also explore unfamiliar cultures and experiences. This trip will allow me to learn more about game development and computer science from professional game developers and give me opportunities to see new sights and explore new places.

Details:

In this program, I will stay in Kyoto for 3 weeks where I will take classes about game development as well as go on weekend excursions to explore the city and landmarks. I will be learning how to code using C++ in Unity (professional game development software). I will also be able to meet and learn from people like Josh Ehling, a lead software engineer for Xbox. By the end of the program, I will have completed a full video game project, which I will present to professional game developers at the end of my trip.

Fundraising Goals: $5000

The total cost of the entire trip is around 8,500 USD

The tuition itself costs 6,500 USD, and does not include travel costs, or extra fees and expenses.
I have raised just over 2,000 USD so far, and I am continuing to push towards my goal.

8,500 USD is a lot of money for anyone, especially for a high school student, so every small amount counts. I am doing what I can to raise my own funds, but I am still in need of help.

What am I doing to raise money?

Selling custom made clothing and merchandise online
Several in person pop up shops to sell my custom merchandise
Freelance artwork projects for my moms graphic design business

I am asking for help because:

Schoolwork is time consuming, it's hard to find work
It's difficult for a high schooler to raise money. I am not looking for free handouts, but any help will go a long way.

How you can support me:

Option 1:

GoFundMe (direct donation)
If you leave your name and contact info, I would love to send you a free keychain or sticker sheet as a thanks for your support!

Option 2:

You can buy merchandise HERE, which features products with my own custom made artwork. All of the profits will go directly to the savings for the trip.

Thank you for checking out my page!

I really hope you consider supporting my study abroad experience. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, and I really hope to make lasting memories. I would appreciate your contribution in any manner, thank you!

Best, Truman