This forum obviously means a lot to him, and I say that based on posts he's made in the past.
I agree. I was really impressed when I saw his bpip website, wihich he clearly spends a lot of time bulding and making it work. It really looks like he cares about the forum, even someone who don't know him can notice that.
About 50 merit... In a few months or years those 50 merits won't make any difference.