Harvest Festival
This past Sunday November 4th the Tabernacle Church of Norfolk celebrated their Harvest Festival, a celebration for the kids to enjoy amongst themselves playing games and eating candy in a safe environment. We've only been visiting this church for a few months so it was a blessing that they allowed us to incorporate Comics For Christmas into the event.
Honestly, we weren't expecting that many kids to attend especially since the event started at 6pm, but to our surprise, the church was packed! It was a true blessing to interact, not only with the kids, but also their parents who time and time again thanked us for what we were doing and were quite shocked that we actually buy comic books and give them away for FREE. Many of the parents asked us "why do you guys do this?" and our reply was Why not? It's easy to point out the negatives in this world and just as easy to say that nobody does anything for anyone without wanting something in return; but that's just not the case.
Our mission since day one has been to bring a little joy to those who can't help themselves, those who sometimes feel like nobody cares for them, those who truly need our understanding and our unconditional love; our kids. It's so easy to forget that thousands of kids, here in the United States, go without gifts on Christmas; and that to me is unacceptable. It's also easy to forget that hundreds of families spend Christmas in a hospital while their kids get the treatment they need to get better, or to survive. That's where we come in! Comics For Christmas was founded on the premise that we'd fight to make a kid smile on Christmas morning, even if its just one kid that we can help; it's better than none. Now let me be clear, I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination and we don't ever get any monetary donations, so all the comic books and candy we give away come from our pockets; and I don't mind in the least bit.
Honestly, we weren't expecting that many kids to attend especially since the event started at 6pm, but to our surprise, the church was packed! It was a true blessing to interact, not only with the kids, but also their parents who time and time again thanked us for what we were doing and were quite shocked that we actually buy comic books and give them away for FREE. Many of the parents asked us "why do you guys do this?" and our reply was Why not? It's easy to point out the negatives in this world and just as easy to say that nobody does anything for anyone without wanting something in return; but that's just not the case.
Our mission since day one has been to bring a little joy to those who can't help themselves, those who sometimes feel like nobody cares for them, those who truly need our understanding and our unconditional love; our kids. It's so easy to forget that thousands of kids, here in the United States, go without gifts on Christmas; and that to me is unacceptable. It's also easy to forget that hundreds of families spend Christmas in a hospital while their kids get the treatment they need to get better, or to survive. That's where we come in! Comics For Christmas was founded on the premise that we'd fight to make a kid smile on Christmas morning, even if its just one kid that we can help; it's better than none. Now let me be clear, I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination and we don't ever get any monetary donations, so all the comic books and candy we give away come from our pockets; and I don't mind in the least bit.
Halloween Comics Giveaway
First I'd like to thank those who made the event possible (they're not many) starting with the people at The Book Exchange, Don Flores for his unending support and my wife for always being there by my side through thick and thin, but besides them, it's only me. Unfortunately the tropical storm Sandy was approaching that very same weekend so the attendance was minimal. Still, I'm grateful that they at least opened their doors to us and for that, we left a bunch of comic books so they could pass them along to kids on Halloween.
That mishap would've crushed the spirits of the average person, but we're not average people when it comes to fighting for kids. As fate would have it, one of our closest friend had invited us to a Halloween party she put together for her kids and their friends, and their event just happened to be on the same day as our Halloween Comics Giveaway! So, instead of being all sad and depressed for the turnout at The Book Exchange, I grabbed a box of comic books and we headed straight to our friend's Halloween Party. When we got there you could hear the kids laughing and yelling from a mile away so we knew then and there that our day was just about to start!
The moment we walked through the door we saw at least 20-25 kids ages 2-13, so you know it was pandemonium! We said hi to everyone, settled in and about an hour into the event I asked the kids if they liked comic books, to which they answered yes, and then I asked them if they wanted some FREE comic books to which they answered with a resounding "YES!!!". Immediately they swarmed me and my wife and I had them make a single line to come and get their free comic books. They absolutely loved those comics, as you'll see in the photos down below. All and all it was a great day because we accomplished what we set out to do in the first place, make some kids happy through the magic of comic books. In the end, we left at the Book Exchange approximately 100 comic books to be given for FREE on Halloween Night and we gave away 400 FREE comic books at the Halloween Party, so around 500 FREE comic books in one day; not too shabby!
That mishap would've crushed the spirits of the average person, but we're not average people when it comes to fighting for kids. As fate would have it, one of our closest friend had invited us to a Halloween party she put together for her kids and their friends, and their event just happened to be on the same day as our Halloween Comics Giveaway! So, instead of being all sad and depressed for the turnout at The Book Exchange, I grabbed a box of comic books and we headed straight to our friend's Halloween Party. When we got there you could hear the kids laughing and yelling from a mile away so we knew then and there that our day was just about to start!
The moment we walked through the door we saw at least 20-25 kids ages 2-13, so you know it was pandemonium! We said hi to everyone, settled in and about an hour into the event I asked the kids if they liked comic books, to which they answered yes, and then I asked them if they wanted some FREE comic books to which they answered with a resounding "YES!!!". Immediately they swarmed me and my wife and I had them make a single line to come and get their free comic books. They absolutely loved those comics, as you'll see in the photos down below. All and all it was a great day because we accomplished what we set out to do in the first place, make some kids happy through the magic of comic books. In the end, we left at the Book Exchange approximately 100 comic books to be given for FREE on Halloween Night and we gave away 400 FREE comic books at the Halloween Party, so around 500 FREE comic books in one day; not too shabby!
VA Comicon 2012
The latest Virginia Comicon was a nice show with a very calm atmosphere and I'll definitely be there for the next one on September 16; one day before my birthday. In attendance were a bunch of cosplayers, dozens of artists and many vendors giving away awesome deals, like 10 comics for $1.00!!! If you weren't there, you missed it! Another thing that it's very important to me and the hobby in general was the attendance of kids and teens and their enthusiasm towards the genre in general. From kids dressed as their favorite superheroes or teens digging through the many piles of comics, it filled my heart with joy and hope to witness this first hand because maybe, just maaaaybe, our beloved comic book medium will live on through future generations, but it's our job to guide them. That's why these shows are important and that's why we need to support every comic show, every Anime show and Cosplay convention. In attendance were creators like Louis Small Jr. (Vampirella), Matt Slay (IDW's TMNT), Rick Ketcham (Tsunami Studios, IDW's TMNT) and many others. I hope to see you at the next VA Comicon!
Summer Explosion 2012
On June 31st, our home church of Mt. Sinai Christian Development Center organized the 1st ever Summer Explosion and invited Comics For Christmas along for the ride. We had live music, praise dancing, food, drinks and of course, COMICS! Even though we had temperatures upwards of 100 degrees, with lots of hydration and love, had an awesome time. Through Comics For Christmas, we gave away 500+ comics absolutely free and every kid in attendance went home with a full belly and a bag full of comics; and that's a good day in my book. It was hot and sticky but I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat, those kids deserve our attention and we'll be there whenever we're called upon; that's our promise!
1st Book Exchange/Comics for Christmas FCBD
On May 12, 2012 we celebrated the 1st ever Book Exchange/Comics For Christmas Free Comic Book Day and in my opinion, it was success! The day started slow, being a Saturday and all, but soon enough people starting coming in and asking for us, meaning Comics For Christmas. It was great to interact with kids and parents alike, and introduce them to this magical world we call comics! I have to admit, it brought me a great deal of satisfaction to know that I might have converted one of these kids into lifelong comic readers. That's the beauty of comics, it doesn't matter who you are or how old you are, it's impossible not to be drawn into this wonderful world of adventure, romance, horror, magic and excitement; the wonderful world of comic books!!!
Free Comic Book Day 2012
On May 5th we celebrated one of the most important days in comics, Free Comic Book Day! As usual, we visited our local comic shop Local Heroes and as usual, they went all out! Among the wonderful things they had for everyone who visited were: free food and drinks, free coffee, face painting, raffles, free balloon characters and of course, FREE COMICS!!! It was a wonderful experience and I'm looking forward to next year.
Thanks to Greg and Meredith for doing such a wonderful job. See ya' next year.
Thanks to Greg and Meredith for doing such a wonderful job. See ya' next year.
Boston Comic Con 2012
This weekend my family and I went to the Boston Comic Con and... it was... INSANE!!! There were waaayyyy more people than I ever expected and the atmosphere was calm and exciting at the same time; if that makes any sense. There were lots of vendors and you basically could buy anything related to comics, movies, video games and all things geek. Many cosplayers were also in attendance and most of them did an incredible job portraying their favorite characters. It was also great to see not only individuals, but entire families enjoying the hobby and taking part in the festivities. One of the coolest things for me was to finally meet all these guys I listen to on a daily basis through their podcasts, such as: Brian Lattendre (co-host of the Secret Identity Podcast), Darrell and Chris (co-hosts of the No Apologies Podcast), Keith Gleasson and John Cimino among others. As "cliche" as it may sound, they were all awesome people and I'm glad to have had the chance of hanging out with them for at least a few minutes and talk comics. Can't wait to do it again! All in all, it was a very cool show and I can't wait to be there again next year! If you love comics and want to be a part of a big comic convention, the Boston Comic Con is a great event to go to. See you all there!
2nd Annual UMET Comics Fest in Bayamon, Puerto Rico
The report was heavy rains and strong, tropical storm level winds gushing by. Traffic lights were malfunctioning and policemen would help out directing traffic. It was a perfect morning to geek out, because it was the 2nd Annual Comic Book Festival at the UMET Bayamon! Last year I was invited as well, but due to the accident most of you know already, I was not able to attend it. But thankfully professor Freddie Gutierrez, organizer of the event, invited me once again. So definitely jumped at the chance to once again attempt to go, this time representing Truthful Comics, of course! So there I was, exhibiting the few physical copies of "Fred Peterson, The Mighty Warlord", and some behind the scene sketches of the book as well as fliers and business cards that would direct any curious minds to this very site. All the fliers was snatched away and I showed off the sites mobile capabilities on my mini-tablet! I even forgot for a few hours that I'm actually a terribly shy human being. Despite that, I spoke to other wonderful creators. Some old friends I hadn't seen in a while, friends who I had not met in person, and people I met for the first time ever. It was a great experience to be with fellow brothers and sisters in comicing. It was a great day, spending hours talking with people that had many questions about Truthful Comics, many of them leaving the table excited with what we were working on. All in all, it was a fantastic experience hopefully this is just the beginning of many other stuff, so stay tuned ;)
Visit to Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters
Last Saturday we took a trip down to the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters in Norfolk, Virginia as part of our Comics For Christmas organization and it was a truly wonderful experience! It's hard to understand what these kids go through on a daily basis but looking at them made us realize how important it is to appreciate our health and our kid's health, but also made us remember why we decided to do this in the first place. We brought Christmas bags filled with comic books and art supplies, I also brought my easel and a big sketch pad, some markers and gave the kids a quick art lesson. I also made some sketches for the kids that asked me for one. The kids were very excited and really enjoyed drawing with me, which made me feel great! The nurses were so thankful that we took the time to bring a little joy to the kids but like I said to them, it's a pleasure to do something nice for those who can't help themselves.
Feeding 5,000 and Community Outreach
On November 19, 2011 we volunteered in the event "Feeding 5,000 and Community Outreach" as part of our non-profit organization Comics For Christmas and it was one of the best experiences of our lives! My family and I were present to give a helping hand to those in need. There were more than 5,000 in attendance and everyone ate, left with some groceries and had a great time in the process! It was a perfect mid-November day, around 60 degrees and we spent it in fellowship with the community; what could be better? The members of our church, Mt. Sinai Christian Development Center, were also in attendance and helped out in any way they could; it was truly a blessing! There was everything from the traditional apple pie, turkey, rice, corn, cake, corn bread... you name it; we had it!
Halleluyah Fest!
On Saturday, October 29, Mt. Sinai Christian Development Center celebrated their 1st Halleluyah Fest, an event created to give the children from the community a chance to play and have fun in a safe enviroment, without having to go out on the streets. From the moment we heard about the event we, as Comics For Christmas, knew that we had to be a part of it! As the kids started coming in, our table was the first thing they saw and to see the reaction on those kids faces reminded us why we do this! Some of them were shy at first, some of them didn't knew what to do or say, or didn't believe we were handing comics to them for free, but as soon as we told them it was ok to pick some of them for free, their expressions changed from being nervous, to being incredibly happy! It was a night we'll never forget, especially since it was also our 1st official event as part of Comics For Christmas.
VA Comic Con 2011
Yesterday my family and I went for the first time to the VA Comic Con in Richmond, Virginia and we had a blast! It wasn't quite what I expected but I wouldn't have changed anything. The staff was very nice, the fans we're very courteous amongst each other and the guest creators were amazing and most importantly, VERY HUMBLE!!! We met a lot of great people and found out that some artists were as amazing human beingsas they are creators. All in all, we had an awesome experience and we can't wait to be a part of it next year! Here's some of the images we captured from the show...
Feeding 1,000
In the month of November of 2010 we volunteered in the event "Feeding 1,000" as part of our non-profit organization Comics For Christmas and it was awesome to give a helping hand to those in need. There were more than 1,000 people in attendance and everyone ate and had a great time! It was a perfect day. The members of our church, Mt. Sinai Christian Development Center, were also in attendance and helped out in any way they could; it was truly a blessing! There was everything from the traditional apple pie, turkey, rice, corn, cake, corn bread... you name it; we had it! Events like this make us realize how much we have and how grateful we SHOULD BE!
Free Comic Book Day 2011
Free Comic Book Day is an annual promotional effort by the North American comics group industry to help bring new readers into independent comic book stores. FCBD started in 2002 and is coordinated by the industry's single large distributor, Diamond Comics Distributors. The next event will be on May 5th, 2012. This was an amazing experience for more than one reason, especially because it was my baby's first FCBD! We went to our local comic shop, Local Heroes, and had an absolute blast! Greg Thompson (owner of Local Heroes) was very attentive as well as his wife, and his employees were simply amazing; as always! There was free pizza and drinks, hourly raffles and $0.50 cent bins... it was perfect! They guys did an amazing job and i know next year will be even better. I can't wait till next year. Thanks Local Heroes!!!
Iron Man 2 Movie Premiere
On April 25, 2010 at 12:00m we experienced the magic of comics come to life in a way that Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and all the greats always dreamed of being able of seeing one day. This was the day we saw the Iron Man 2 movie premiere and it was wonderful! Our baby was exactly 11 days old when we saw it and he didn't even flinched! I guess we have a future comic fan in the making!!! The people in attendance were very excited as were we and for good reason, the movie delivered! Robert Downy Jr. was amazing as always and even though I miss Terrence Howard portraying his role as Rhodey. Scarlett Johanson was a welcome addition as Black Widow and Mickey Rourke gave a great performance as Whiplash. All in all, great movie and a great time at the movies. Can't wait for Thor and The Avengers!
Feeding 2,000 and Community Outreach
In November of 2009 we volunteered for the first time in the event "Feeding 2,000 and Community Outreach" as part of our non-profit organization Comics For Christmas and it was one of the best experiences of our lives! My family and I were present to give a helping hand to those in need. The members of our church, Mt. Sinai Christian Development Center, were also in attendance. There was everything from the traditional apple pie, turkey, rice, corn, cake, corn bread... you name it; we had it! One thing worth mentioning is that there were a loooot more than 2,000 people in attendance that day, and they all ate and had a great time; so it's all good!
1st Ponce Comicon (Puerto Rico)
The 1st Ponce Comicon was an example of a gamble that payed off big time. Nobody knew what to expect but we all decided to help the organizers of the event, and the results were incredible. More people attended than anyone expected and most important, they were buying! Kids, adults, teens, you name it, they were there in bunches and they all had a great time; we all did! This is an example of a well organized event that I wouldn't mind being a part of in the near future!
24 Hour Comic Book Day 2007 (Puerto Rico)
On Saturday June 9th 2007 a dream came true for many cartoonists in Puerto Rico when the first 24 Hour Comic Challenge event was celebrated. The 24 Hour Comics Day is an international celebration of comics creation. Cartoonists all over take the challenge of trying to create a 24 page comic story in 24 straight hours. In 2006 this event was celebrated in 17 countries around the world. The 24 hour comics challenge was created in 1990 by Scott McCloud, leading comics theoretician and author of Understanding Comics and Reinventing Comics. Joel (Chizz) Vazquez was the one who proposed the idea of doing a 24 hour comic challenge in Puerto Rico. Thanks to Jose Esteras, owner of the Red Goblin Collectibles store in Cupey Professional Mall, we got his store to host the challenge. Paquines.com, Puerto Rico's biggest website focused on comics, animé and science fiction was used to promote the event and contact the artists. There was so much enthusiasm for the event and October seemed so far away that the idea to do a tryout for the real challenge was born. So on June 9th several cartoonists gathered at the Red Goblin store to see if they could do a comic book in 24 hours and use the experience for the October event; the rest is history!
1st San Juan Cosplay Photoshoot (Puerto Rico)
I'm no Cosplayer, but I can respect the artistry in creating a costume that is an exact replica of something you see in a cartoon, Anime, Manga or a comic book. It takes a lot of work and dedication and it's important to recognize these talented young men and women who pour their hearts and souls into their craft. I'm glad I was a part of the 1st ever Old San Juan, Puerto Rico Cosplay Photo shoot and got the chance to not only watch all this incredible costumes, but also interact with these incredible people who call themselves Cosplayers. Great experience and hopefully I get to hang out with them soon.
1st Kaisen & Anime Convention (Puerto Rico)
This was the 1st ever Kaisen & Anime Convention in Puerto Rico and it was the first convention I showed my comic book; ever. As you can imagine, my nerves were on edge but we sold a bunch of them, we met great people, we listened to some live music, saw great Cosplayers and we had a blast!
Free Comic Book Day 2007
This was the first Free Comic Book Day we ever attended, and it was really cool! Me and Truthful Comics Co-Founder Alvaro Cortez Ortiz Jr went, got some comics, drew a little bit and had an all around good time. There were many comics enthusiasts excited about the event, there were people who were just curious about the whole thing and there were a few cosplayers having fun with the kids in attendance; it was super fun! I hope we can attend another one in the near future. For me, as a former member of Don Algaro Comics, I signed some autographs, talk with a few fans, drew a few sketches and took a few photos; it was nice. It was a wonderful event.
1st Utuado Comicon (Puerto Rico)
The 1st and only Utuado Comicon was, by all commercial standards, a disaster. We had basically no attendance, the people who were going to promote the event never did and the guy that was going to contact the radio stations in order to promote the event never did either, so as you might expect, there was nobody there. A last effort by one of my friends drew around 40-50 people but that wasn't enough. In the end, all was not lost. We ended up recording a great podcast, we hung out amongst other local creators and we learned how not to make the same mistakes again. I'm sure that if we ever do another convention in Utuado, things will turn out VERY different.
