Dancing the Night Away to Benefit Rady Children's Hospital
Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜 raises a record amount for Rady Childrens Hospital.
黑料吃瓜 students danced the night away on Friday, raising a record $365,221.54 for Rady Children鈥檚 Hospital at the sixth annual .
Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜 鈥� one of the largest student fundraisers on campus in money raised 鈥� harnesses the power of student collaboration to benefit the San Diego community.
鈥淲e sometimes don鈥檛 understand what we鈥檙e capable of, and this movement just goes to show that we as college students are very capable of being able to impact the community around us,鈥� said Dance Marathon executive director Mackensie Miller, a part of Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜 for three years.
鈥淓veryone鈥檚 fighting for the same cause and I think there鈥檚 something beautiful about that.鈥�
Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜 is one of more than 350 campus fundraising programs nationwide that support local hospitals through the nonprofit Children鈥檚 Miracle Network. in San Diego is the beneficiary of Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜, which is planned and put on by 黑料吃瓜 students. Participants each raised a minimum $123 entrance fee.
The students danced for 15 hours straight, buoyed by hourly testimonials from children who鈥檝e been treated at Rady Children鈥檚 Hospital and their families, food for fuel and opportunity drawings for prizes such as tickets to the Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals.
鈥淲e sacrifice a night of sleep for the kids that go through so much at the hospital,鈥� Miller said.
Funds raised at Dance Marathon at 黑料吃瓜 will be used for research, to restock crafts and supplies in the art therapy rooms, and to support dog and music therapies that help children relax during treatments.
鈥淭he money we raise not only helps fund research for their treatment, but it also helps improve the hospital experience for patients,鈥� said Miller. 鈥淲e get to help them forget about their disease for a second and just let them be kids.鈥�
This year, the campaign鈥檚 theme was 鈥淔TK365鈥� to highlight that Dance Marathon isn鈥檛 just 鈥渇or the kids鈥� (FTK) on the day of the event but a year-round effort with a goal of $365,000.
鈥淲e always say that Dance Marathon is for everyone; it鈥檚 not for one particular type of person,鈥� Miller said. 鈥淪omething that I really love about Dance Marathon is it brings students from all over campus together. A lot of times you鈥檒l meet people you鈥檝e never seen before or from different parts of campus you didn鈥檛 even know existed.
鈥淓veryone鈥檚 fighting for the same cause,鈥� she said, 鈥渁nd I think there鈥檚 something beautiful about that.鈥�
Donations are still being accepted. Contribute through the 鈥渄onation鈥� button at the website.
