Hello, my name is Anthony. Many of you know me as Lucky Ace, some of you may prior know me as Ace Poker, and this is my short story. I am 24 years old, and have been trying to find my purpose and “job” in this vast world. I went to school for marketing, got my degree, but I knew I never wanted a “9-5”. At the time, what I did know, was that I loved, LOVED playing poker. I decided to put all my time and effort into growing a poker channel, named Ace Poker, where I would record the poker hands I played and recap them on short vlogs, and it was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my life. Overcoming self doubt, being dead broke, the race against time to prove to my family that I could make a career out of this before they got fed up and kicked me out, among many other obstacles made me into who I am today. I achieved an overwhelming amount of success, reaching 13,000 YouTube subscribers, traveling the world to play poker, meeting my idols, and even becoming someone that others look up to in the poker space. I proved to myself that I could do whatever I put my mind towards.

I had it all, and I was on top of the world… until I wasn’t.

I had put my head down and grinded so much that my health had taken a toll, I hadn’t seen my friends, hadn’t spent any meaningful time with my family, and ruined relationships that I was in all for some dream I so blindly followed. I am and forever will be grateful for those experiences, but it had reached a point where I needed to put myself, and my health first for once, so I dropped everything and focused inward. Eating healthy, going to the gym, meditating, and most important of all to me, I actually got closer to God. Going to church, reading the bible everyday, and before I knew it, my life was drastically improving. I was actually enjoying life for once again.

Yet, there I was with this burning hole in my life, this burning desire to actually do something, make an impact. For those who have known me forever, I am one of the most generous people around. I am always there to lend a helping hand, a helping ear, donate to those in need, or be of any assistance in hard times. This world is so messed up, and I am so beyond lucky to be in such a good place in life. It is something that is deep rooted in me, to put the needs of others before mine in pretty much every situation. I truly believe I am so blessed in life because God knows I will redirect those blessings unto those who need it more than I. I will always be there for that helping hand. And that is why I am right here, typing these words, and starting this project that will be near and dear to my heart.

About 2 months ago, I thought to myself, well, if poker has become “boring” and not so great for me, but I love building communities, I love putting myself out there, and I do still love gambling, what can combine all of that? Here is where my good friend Troy, CEO of SGG media comes into play. Troy has grown his company working with influencers (over 2000!) to advertise and market for some of the biggest sports companies in the world (Draft Kings and Fanduel to name a few)! Troy saw the growing market for casino streaming, and decided to reach out to me to see if I would be interested. Of course I would be, getting paid to have some fun streaming to my audience and gamble, duh, anyone would.

Now finally, this is where Gamble For Good originates! I have seen the absolute lows of the gambling world through my time in poker, and I had always felt weird being “in the industry” being religious, but mostly just seeing the negative impact that gambling has on so many people. I didn’t just want to be another run of the mill casino streamers, I wanted to take responsibility for being in charge of such a vast community and network to actually do some good not only in the gambling space, but in the world as a whole. Thus, the idea for Gamble For Good was born. I decided I would dedicate one stream per month where I would donate anything I would have made for streaming that day, as well as opening up the ability for people to donate, and give it all to charity that day! A huge shoutout to Troy and SGG media for matching my donation in these efforts! Refer to the How this works section to learn more!

The first charity I am choosing is the Coalition For The Homeless, a charity that helps the homeless population in NYC. I live in NJ, so an east coast homeless charity was of top priority to me. As it is currently February, I always cannot help but think about the homeless on these brutally cold days. I could not even begin to imagine sleeping outside.

Thank you to all that have read all of this, and I hope you can help support. If you cannot make a monetary donation, there is plenty you can do to help by sharing this website to friends and family, following us on social media @gambleforgood on Instagram, and sharing our posts around. Thank you so much and God Bless.