‘Pokémon Go’ fans halt plan to raise money for Los Banos cemetery

An online fundraiser led by “Pokémon Go” enthusiasts for projects at the Los Banos cemetery has been suspended after critics suggested it was a bribe allowing players to continue using the site for the augmented reality game.

Those claims are false, said cemetery manager Linda Brown and Jeremiah Clark, the player who started the GoFundMe page.

But after receiving calls accusing the “Pokémon Go” players of bribery, Brown asked Clark to take down the page to avoid misconceptions about any donations.

“Some people were perceiving it as buying me off for coming into the cemetery,” Brown said. “Some said they think playing the game in the cemetery is disrespectful.”

However, Brown said the players she has seen at the public cemetery the past few weeks have been quiet, stayed on roads and walking paths and didn’t cause problems.

Also, the cemetery has no gate and is open to anyone, Brown said. Cemetery officials can’t stop anyone from walking in regardless.

Clark, who is an administrator for the community Facebook group “Los Banos Pokémon Go!” also denied that the fundraiser was a bribe. But he honored Brown’s request by taking down the GoFundMe page on Friday.

“It was never my intention to have any negative community impact,” Clark said. “I don’t want to invalidate others’ opinions. I can see their concerns. I’m just a little bummed. This was supposed to be a way to help out.”

The incident hasn’t stopped players from brainstorming ways to help out the Los Banos community, according to the Facebook group.

“Pokémon Go,” a smartphone app based on the Nintendo video game and TV series, took Los Banos, and the world, by storm when it was introduced in the United States on July 6. In one week, the game surpassed Twitter in daily users and saw more engagement than Facebook, according to SurveyMonkey Intelligence.

Players walk around the real world catching Pokémon as they appear in the app, which uses GPS technology. Players can evolve, power up and battle their Pokémon in designated gyms. And they are also encouraged to walk around to hatch virtual Pokemon eggs and visit real-world landmark-based locations called Pokéstops.

The cemetery is one of the best spots to catch Pokémon in the game, according to comments in the Facebook group page. It also contains several Pokéstops and a nearby Pokémon gym. The locations were set up using a database from a previous game, Ingress, by game developer Niantic.

Clark said as more players started showing up at the location, there were some questions and worries about the cemetery’s rules.

He discussed the issue at length with Brown early last week, and gave her information on how to request removal of the Pokéstop locations from the game if she wanted. Brown said there wasn’t a need for that at this point.

“We want to bridge the gap between the communities,” Clark said. “We want to show that we’re not out to cause trouble, just to play a game.”

At the same meeting, Brown told Clark about some projects and different ways that “Pokémon Go” players can help out, including donating a bench and working on the infant section. So Clark started the GoFundMe page for that purpose.

The cemetery is open to anyone, but Brown is urging “Pokémon Go” players to not catch Pokémon there at night.

“They have been respectful so far,” Brown said. “But I sometimes have other people who come out and party at night, and when we come in the next day, beer cans are everywhere. That’s disrespectful.”

Brown said she doesn’t want people to trip and fall over headstones in the night. Also, some people come to pay respects to loved ones at night. Brown is asking for all people, whether “Pokémon Go” players or not, to respect that.

Brown said she would welcome fundraising efforts by the “Pokémon Go” community in the future if there eventually is more clarification and understanding of the group’s intentions.

“I think it’s kind of nice to see people out in the community and kids walking around becoming familiar with the town through the game,” Brown said.

This story was originally published July 26, 2016 at 4:33 PM with the headline "‘Pokémon Go’ fans halt plan to raise money for Los Banos cemetery."