The Dance Marathon, a 24-hour marathon of non-stop dancing organized by Hope College students to raise funds for the children of DeVos Children's Hospital, begins at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 10.
The Dance Marathon, a 24-hour marathon of non-stop dancing organized by Hope College students to raise funds for the children of DeVos Children's Hospital, begins at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 10.
The event takes place in the college's Dow Center,
located on the corner of 13th Street and Columbia Avenue.
The marathon will conclude on Saturday, March 11, at 7 p.m.
Students at Hope have been fundraising and
preparing for the event since November, and the results of
their hard work are about to be revealed. "We have put so
much effort into this and are excited to see the results of
our work benefiting such awesome kids," said Anne Schrock,
the director of the Dance Marathon, who is a senior from
Mason.
The distinguishing characteristic of the
fundraiser is that 100 percent of the money raised goes
directly to the miracle children, who are the patients and
inspiration for the event. The amount of money raised by
student organizations for the Children's Miracle Network at
DeVos Children's Hospital is in the thousands, but the exact
amount will be revealed in a check presentation during the
marathon.
Throughout the evening there will be games,
relays, lip-sync contests and live bands, including: Dazy
Head Mazy, Jay Lite and the John Reed Band. One of the
highlights is "Kids Healing Kids," a performance dedicated
to the miracle children by the students of Waukazoo
Elementary School, which starts at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Dance Marathon dancers will engage in a variety of
dances: country, rock, Latin and even a kind of finger
paint dancing. Each hour of the marathon will have a
different theme that will begin with a line dance in which
everyone drops everything to unify in one immense dance for
kids.
"We are directly benefiting our community through
this effort because all of our families are from the Holland
area. Some are even children of alumni and professors,"
said Stacey Baker, who is family relations chair and a
junior from Saginaw.
The 10 children and their families, who will
receive the money to help cover the costs of treatment, will
attend the event. Each Hope group, such as a residence hall
or Greek organization, is paired with a child who they are
spending time getting to know before the event takes place.
Organizations have taken their children to Hope basketball
games or out to dinner, or have held small recovery parties
with them.
"We are really appreciative of all of the work
that students are putting into their community," said Laura
Staskiewicz, who is the development director at DeVos
Children's Hospital. "It will be really evident when
students see the smiles on the children's faces at the
marathon."
The public is welcome to attend and there is no
admission fee, although donations will be accepted at the
door. Anyone interested in contributing to Dance Marathon
may contact the Dance Marathon office at (616) 395-7472, or
write to: Student Activities; 141 E. 12th Street; Holland,
MI 49423.