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As suggested, this was the farewell letter posted on Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at 12:40 AM.


"Edit: I will be staying up all of this Tuesday for 24 Hours, hosting Frog Jump sessions for our last Hoorah! I encourage every Duremite to join when you see a group!

As the Rejected Olympics come to a close, I just wanted to submit a few final words to the lovely, lovely people of Durem before the forum is removed with the closing of the site event.

The past week for me has been nothing short of stellar, and I've never been more proud to be any part of any team of anything I've done. I would hope you all feel the same pride as I do, because you have band together and unified to bring much more to the table than just points on a leaderboard. Allow me to dig up two of my older posts from different things at different days earlier in the week. I didn't realize how relevant they were to each other until I started typing up this letter.

"Remember, that we are TEAM Durem. TEAM. We work together in "single" player games, multiplayer games, etc. Everything we do should be to benefit everyone, including yourself."

"Durem is a city that has been built on hard workers that never give up and consistently prosper.

Over the past week, I have seen some of the best Gaians I have ever met in my five years on this website pull together not only to bring honor to the Durem name, but to gain pride. Pride in what they do, pride in who they're with, and pride in themselves. I have not seen one of these people give up, and I know deep down you also don't really want to give up, because there's still that hope. The hope that we pull together and gain the extra points. The hope that maybe there's a miscount. It's that hope that's pulling everyone together, and you know where that comes from?

It comes from their pride."

A week ago many of us had no idea the other existed. And now I can't go a day without thinking when the next time I'm gonna chat with my team is. I'm sure my cellphone's data plan has not been very happy about it, either. Realize at this moment that clicking "Durem" as your active team in the Rejected Olympics was much bigger than an impulse decision, or an affection for red and black. It decided who you were going to meet, what was going to become of you, and where you were heading. I don't think one person has regretted the decision.

Remember that the leaderboard points are simply numbers in a page. They don't hold much more significance then deciding which shiny piece of precious metal you receive at the end. (Maybe even toast for some.) They can't tell you what you've won or lost, because they're not alive. They don't feel. Have we truly lost, when we have met each other and shared such great experiences and memories with each other? Absolutely not. We've won more than we can imagine and reached the gold, diamond, and platinum trophies of friendship. The 2012 trophy is just pixels on a screen, on a virtual realm that has no real "existance." But friendship. Teamwork. Comradery. Care. Love. That is something that will stay with us forever, in real life.

Call me hopeful, but I have always believed in the power of the people. If other teams can make such a huge gap in points, then I truly, whole-heartedly believe we can still nail a third if we put our minds to it. Be prepared for anything to happen, but know that we have already won.

You have it in you. I know we all do.
Duremites never give up. EVEN when everything's over.
There's always hope. And we will always have each other!

Hugs,
Kaper"