Hey @ericvancewalton it was great having you last year and this post is a great motivator (I hope) for future visitors! Great to read it up from that side.

Very noble to donate all moneys to SteemFest, but may I suggest that you donate the liquid Steem /SBD from this post to @t-r-f the Travel Fund? (note the spelling of the account @t-r-f). This way it will be redistributed after the event to applicants of the fund, so many people can enjoy the fruits of this post by having some return on their trip expenses...

I will do my utmost best making the event as affordable as possible by leveraging hoteldeals, venue hosslings, sponsorships and whale support (and some ticket fees). Don't get me wrong I really like your gesture, but I think it would better serve the @t-r-f (Travel Reimbursement Fund) for steemfest. See the account for explanations!