My family and I send our love and prayers to Aprilanne, Annalisa, Hayley, Ariana, Briellle, & Scott Sweat. xo
Tanya Vreeken and the Castillo Family
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Wow, what should I share. Ben was full of energy. I always enjoyed watching him perform with the Ballroom Team from BYUI. He was a great dancer but also a great performing. You could see on his face the love he had for dance as well as people in general. You are missed.
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Whenever the song "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bonjovi comes on the radio, I think of Ben. This song reminds me of him because of a funny experience that happened on one of our ballroom dance tours (Mexico tour 2001). The ballroom guys were taking turns coming up with cool songs that they would then belt out and sing together. Well, Ben came up with " Woa, we're halfway there!..." and waited for the other guys to join in but no one did! He was like, "Guys! Don't leave me hanging!" but evidently the other guys didn't know the song, at least not as well as Ben did. ha ha! I think of him every time I hear it and it brings back wonderful and fun memories of Ben. We miss him.
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Was just getting to know Ben - which was very easy to do. Ben was extremely humble and open to people even in our typically more sterile and aloof business colleague setting. We found a few shared intersections - Firstly, Ben had come up with a video game idea he called "Bomb Your Friends". As he talked about it you could hear his voice and overall energy both rise. It was clear Ben had some unfinished, creative business he missed in his current role focused on real estate financing. He said he came up with the idea for Bomb Your Friends in 2015 - which puts it well ahead of its time. Essentially, it was an extremely social game - as you would choose and send different types of "bombs" to anyone in your social network. The bombs could be in a variety of forms - from photos to trivia questions. Depending on your response to the bombs - a responsive photo or by providing the correct answer - you would either be damaged by or damage the sender. This is actually an incredible simple but powerful social game mechanic. Ben had worked on this game with $150K of seed funding when he worked at Idea Labs - a now historic and even iconic digital think tank that now gets much credit for creating what we now call "start up accelerators". As such, they were not a game development studio and so in the end, Idea Labs lacked the talent to bring Ben's idea fully to market.
Just reminiscing about his days at Idea Labs revealed a highly energized mind. We talked on a bit about how Bomb Your Friends might fit with some of the current mobile game experiences that have grown so popular lately.
His energy now flowing, Ben went on to describe several more game ideas he had worked to bring to fruition prior to Idea Labs including - "8 bit pigs" - a game loosely based on something similar to Minecraft's gameplay and "Club Cave Man" - which he described as "Subservient Chicken meets Dora the Explorer". It was clear to me that Ben had a creative side that needed more time and attention.
So much so that, with my video gaming background and talent connections, I offered to help him bring Bomb Your Friends to market if he could go get the original IP from Bill Gross at Idea Labs.
He sounded a little more than intrigued...
We missed that journey together - if it would have ever happened - but I definitely missed the rest of getting to know Ben, something I was very much looking forward to. However, we also shared a faith. How comforting to know that Ben is where we all long to be when God is finished using us up on earth - whenever that is, only He knows.
dbb
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Aprilanne, Brielle and the entire Sweat Family,
I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I wish there were words to help ease your pain. My thoughts and prayers are with you during this tremendously difficult time. Sending love, hugs and my deepest sympathies.
Love,
Sarah Bell
(Brielle’s Kinder Teacher)
0
My sincere condolences to the entire family. Although it has been about 15 years since I last worked with Ben, I was still very much affected by his passing. I took me a while to summon the courage to write this. I remember Ben as a very smart, creative and hard working colleague. Many times, I wished I could be just half as good as Ben. Ben not only inspired me professionally, but also as a person. His love & commitment for his wonderful family seemed endless. He lived proudly, and seemingly effortlessly, by his principles. I hope I will honor his name by taking that Ben as an inspiration for the rest of my life. Rest in peace Ben.
1
There are no words to convey how sorry I am for your loss. All of my love and my deepest sympathies go to you and your beautiful family. You are all in my thoughts and prayers. May the love and light that surrounds you help bring peace to you and your sweet children. I’m so sorry Aprilanne.
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2018, Boerne, TX, USA
Dog and Pony
— with
Ben and Aprilanne Sweat
0
1996, Idaho Falls, ID, USA
BHS Sweetheart Dance
— with
Ben Sweat
and Marnie Sterzer Parker
0
1996, Idaho Falls, ID, USA
High School Photo Collage
— with
Ben Sweat
and Marnie Sterzer Parker
0
1995, Idaho Falls, ID, USA
BHS Homecoming
— with
Ben Sweat
and Marnie Sterzer Parker
0
I’m so sorry for your loss. My heart aches for you🙏
0
2021, San Antonio, TX, USA
Christmas Trip to see the lights and stay up late playing games in a hotel
1
Aprilanne-
Many thoughts and prayers and love are with you and your family! I am so so sorry for your loss of your dear sweet husband and father. I pray that the Savior will wrap you and your family in His arms, as you mourn and grieve your loss.
Much love,
Marianne Harman
0
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