Local Entrepreneur Channels Inner Geek to Help Kids Find Superpowers
Get 50% off when you Register through May 28. Use code: PLAYMERP
Mike Schaefer is a self-confessed gaming geek. Not just video games (although he plays those, too), but board games and tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering.
Gaming has been Mike’s hobby since his ‘tween years…. even his family and friends have been unable to escape the gravitational pull of his obsession with games. Get invited to Mike’s house for dinner or a party? Be prepared to roll up your sleeves, ditch your mobile, and use your imagination to have some other-worldly fun.
However, the Schaefers have a little secret… traditional board games are stored in just about every room in the house. And it doesn’t stop there. The garage, game room, home office, and one child’s closet are filled with comic books and action figures.
Fantasy novels in the vein of Tolkien and H.P. Lovecraft fill overflowing bookshelves. At parties, their friends’ children hound Mike to run games for them. He’s at the opening night of every movie that features a comic book character. Therefore, it was a small moment of serendipity when local education provider, NuMinds Enrichment, approached him last October to create an original live-action role play day for their students.
Over the course of two popular role-playing events since then, Mike has been fine-tuning his game. The idea has evolved into a sophisticated day of gaming now known as MERP (Massively Epic Role-Play).
On Saturday, May 28th, from 9am to 4pm in the , MERP will introduce kids from grades 1-8 to the socially interactive fun of role-playing games.
Adventurers navigate through fantasy worlds and epic quests in a safe, creative storytelling environment. They start by designing custom characters with unique superpowers, and then they join forces with their fellow kids to overcome heroic challenges using the capabilities they’ve built into their characters.
Over the course of the day, kids nab epic loot, level up their characters, make friends, and save the world from certain doom. They accomplish all of this with their minds—and without relying on TV or electronics.
Young MERPers benefit from the game in unexpected ways. Not only is the gameplay insanely fun, but it also helps kids develop problem-solving techniques and social skills. They need to use math, logic, storytelling, and teamwork to navigate through a MERP. It’s like secretly baking vegetables into a cake; they’re getting stuff that’s good for them, hidden within a tasty package.
Even the kids who don’t quite fit in socially—whether they’re quirky, creative, special needs, gifted, introverted, or a combination thereof—revel in the game. It’s as if the simple act of playing a heroic fantasy character helps kids tap into a persona that was always deep inside of them.
In response to the demand for MERP events, Mike has formed Creative Role-Play Academy. It’s a family- and friend-based business. His sons Logan and Wyatt are not only enthusiastic MERPers, they also contribute to the gameplay and help test the challenges. His wife Janet handles marketing communications. His father John is handling operations, accounting, and game production, and his friends help run the quest tables at the events.
Creative Role-Play Academy continues to partner with NuMinds Enrichment to deliver MERPs in the Frisco area and beyond. NuMinds has a unique story of its own… Founded by two former Frisco ISD Gifted and Talented teachers who wanted to provide creative, passion-based, out-of-the-box education, they have a fiercely loyal following of students, parents, and teachers, as well as a track record of advocacy for creative individuals who want to find the sweet spot where their interests meet their aptitude.
So DON’T MISS the MERP to be held on Saturday, May 28 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at St. Philip’s Episcopal School in Frisco! Offering young adventurers three MERP worlds to start from:
- the sci-fi-based Galactic Frontiers
- the fantasy realms of the Fabled Kingdoms, and
- the gritty superhero universe of Megatropolis.
Participants also get to watch an authentic battle demonstration from a local medieval sword fighting guild.
If the adventure of MERP appeals to a kid you know, REGISTER NOW for the May 28th MERP Through Creative Role-Play Academy and receive 50% off admission.
Kids enjoy the experience so much they don’t realize they’re actually uncovering some of their own hidden superpowers. They just think they’re saving the universe!
