Two Woodstock gamers join forces to create dating website
By JAMI KUNZER - jkunzer@shawmedia.com
Two Woodstock natives have created a professional dating site for others like them who enjoy video games.
This includes anyone from those who regularly take on a couple hours worth of “Assassin’s Creed III” to fans of “Angry Birds” or “FarmVille” addicts on Facebook.
LFGdating.com is not for the teens many might stereotype as gamers, said Casey Tebo, a Woodstock North High School English teacher who created the site with his long-time friend Patrick Rafferty.
“In our culture, when people think video games they think an 18- or 19-year-old living in their parent’s basement,” he said. “Here, we’re trying to reach the more mature gamer.”
Other sites have been kind of amateur or unprofessional, he said.
Working out the kinks, redesigning and taking customer feedback for the past year or so, the two officially launched the site Friday.
Although he preferred not to disclose the number of members signed up so far, Tebo said the site has had record numbers the past several months and has members in all 50 states.
It allows participants to create a profile for free and look for matches. There is a fee to contact matches.
Tebo himself grew up in a home where his parents frowned upon video games, although he said he often still found ways to play.
“As we’ve gotten older, we’ve continued to play,” he said.
He and Rafferty’s conversations often centered around video games. “It’s always been part of our personal culture,” he said.
Single when they created the concept for the site, the two now have girlfriends.
They hope to provide a resource for others, from those who plays a game on a mobile app to kill time on a 10-minute train ride to those who take part in massive online player games, such as “WorldCrafts.”
