• by OMMA Magazine Writers , August 22, 2011

The Urban Ministries of Durham created SPENT, a game that uses the social characteristics of games like Farmville, to completely upend the way people think about poverty and homelessness. The goal: Start with $1,000 and make it last through one month with money left, while facing medical, social and employment dilemmas. The game includes social tie-ins to ask for help with messages like, "I can't pay all my bills this month. Can I borrow some money?", which also helped spread the word about the game and poverty awareness. Players who finish the game are invited to donate and learn more about Urban Ministries of Durham's mission. SPENT has been played more than 1 million times in 194 countries and was featured on major news outlets (ABC,CNN and NPR, among others). SPENT has raised more than $20,000 for Urban Ministries of Durham.