Dance Marathon is famous among UNC students for its enthusiastic recruiting and passionate participants, often dressed in wild costumes and shouting, “For the kids.”
And now the student-run organization is expanding its reach to a local middle school.
On Friday night, UNC Dance Marathon and McDougle Middle School held the first ever “Dance-a-Thon” — a two and a half-hour mini-marathon — to raise money for patients at N.C. Children’s Hospital.
During the past three weeks, students worked with McDougle student teacher Abby Poeske and UNC student Megan Warren, who both work with UNC’s Dance Marathon, to brainstorm concepts and activities for the mini-marathon.
“It’s a matter of finding the right group of kids that are willing to take the time to help others,” Warren said.
With an entry fee of $5, the kids could participate in a night of dancing and activities, including a costume contest, a rave with glow sticks, a card-making table for the kids at the children’s hospital and a banner-making station.
“It’s different because it’s for something and it’s making a difference,” said eighth-grader Maeve Gualtieri-Reed, who enjoyed having a social event that was different from a normal middle-school dance.
“It’s great being together and doing the same thing.”
At the end of the night, the students on the 16-person planning committee presented the final fundraising total of $2,531.
