Xbox recently hosted a celebration of gaming with a #MyXbox holiday event at the Flagship Microsoft Store in New York City. I’m on the Xbox Community Team and had the pleasure of serving as event emcee and helped lead this gathering that, of course, included all of the usual holiday party standbys like games, music, food, and fun. It also provided the time and space for us to celebrate the importance of diversity and inclusion in our industry. It was a moment for myself and other members of the Black community of all ages to come together, much like any other community, through their love of gaming.

Now, more than ever, I am a firm believer in games as a great unifier. However, even as we all strive to be understanding, we still need to make a conscious effort to ensure everyone feels included. After all, we know that when everybody plays, we all win.

To that end, the team from Xbox welcomed actor, musician and avid Xbox gamer Trey Smith and Power 105.1 The Breakfast Club host Angela Yee to the Store to inspire and motivate younger gamers to get into games and bring their imaginations to life. Kids and their family members and mentors from the Harlem Children’s Zone, Royalty Project and Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club enjoyed playing some of the hottest games on Xbox and designing their own versions of the new Xbox Avatars.

In addition to giving away some great prizes, including Xbox One S consoles, games, and Xbox Game Pass memberships, other highlights included a photo booth and “Forza Horizon 4” stream with Trey Smith on the Xbox Ambassadors Mixer channel.

As a life-long Xbox fan, I cherish the opportunity to empower Xbox fans to help make the Xbox community not only the best on the planet, but also a place where everyone feels welcomed and included. If you are an Xbox fan and want to help celebrate the Xbox community and all the ways we make gaming for everyone, here are a few easy ways to jump in on the fun:

1. Become an Xbox Ambassador – Xbox Ambassadors are the leaders of the Xbox community. Whether they are welcoming a new Xbox gamer into the community or playing with a new friend from a different country, they represent all the best parts of gaming – fun and togetherness. If making Xbox fun for everyone is something that interests you (and you are 17 years or older), become an Xbox Ambassador today!
2. Create your Xbox Avatar – The new Xbox Avatars are expressive, creative and, most importantly, bring to life the community of fans they represent. They appear throughout the Xbox One dashboard, including on profiles, Gamerscore comparisons, community posts and more.
3. Join Clubs on Xbox Live – Clubs are groups on Xbox Live created by the Xbox community for people to play and socialize. You can join or create clubs that interest you, so that you can be sure to share the things you love with other like-minded gamers.
4. Create an LFG – It’s easy to make new friends and play the games you love by creating an LFG post or responding to one created by someone else on Xbox Live. With LFG you can looking for gaming sessions that fit your style.

The wondrous look on the faces of young gamers at the event was proof of the power of gaming to make everyone, everywhere have fun together and celebrate this holiday. Everyone’s #MyXbox story is different and unique to them. So, get out there and show us how YOU Xbox this holiday.