I received an email from IMVU’s PR people, part of which I think is worth re-publishing:

IMVU user PraiseRose is turning virtual donations into real world relief for individuals and communities affected by the devastating bushfires in Victoria, Australia.

A Canada native, PraiseRose has never even visited Australia, but she was so moved by the coverage of the tragedy on the news that she decided to do something about it. She created a virtual sticker in IMVU, an online destination where adults and teens meet new people in 3D, and began to sell it to other IMVU users to help raise awareness about the bushfires. So far, the response from within the IMVU community has been overwhelming. Each sticker sells for 750 IMVU credits (about US$1), and so far PraiseRose has raised nearly 800,000 IMVU credits (almost US$500.00).

“This fundraiser has brought this community together in amazing ways,” Says PraiseRose. “I’ve made many so new friends, from all over the world. The response, and the trust have so totally overwhelmed me.” The fundraiser is set to end on March 1st at which time PraiseRose will donate the money she’s raised to the Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal.

It’d be fascinating to get a tally of the dollars raised in virtual worlds to date – a conservative estimate would be tens of thousands of dollars.