muenster passes donation goal as community raises over $15k to replace stolen camera equipment

It's a wonderful day for fans of North American Counter-Strike as photographer and FRAG volunteer former coach Joseph "muenster" Lima told Dust2.us that he has raised roughly $15.4k to replace his stolen camera equipment, surpassing the goal he set out less than a week ago.

After his equipment was stolen following the conclusion of FRAG St. Clair, muenster opened a GoFundMe campaign to try and recoup some of the losses as dozens in the community offered to provide support. He set out an initial goal of $15k to comfortably be able to buy everything back, and the outpouring of donations was immediate.

In less than one day, the campaign had already amassed more than $10k as community members, big and small, rallied to lend a hand. Within just another couple of days, he had officially reached his goal.

Last night, he posted some words of thanks on social media:

"Without a doubt in my mind I know I can get back to basically exactly where I was before all my equipment was stolen. I'll be leaving the gofundme open to anyone who wants to further support me...but at this point I don't need anything else."

For any of the many people who have seen his work or interacted with him, it is no surprise at all that he reached this goal, as his presence is simply priceless in our region. Lima told Dust2.us:

I'm eternally grateful to this community and all the comments and messages I got supporting me and my work has been incredibly validating. Despite how unlucky it was to get my equipment stolen, I'm even more lucky to be supported at this level by the community and to be able to continue photographing events.

More motivated than ever and can't wait to get back at it.