Students across campus are gearing up for an eight hour Dance Marathon on March 7 dedicated to helping kids in need. 

Simpson’s Dance Marathon co-directors are Logan Pettit and Tori Vaudt. They are both eager for the day to come. 

“What we do for Dance Marathon is kind of the cap off for the whole fundraising year,” Vaudt said. “During that day we try to fundraise the most that we can just to cap it off. We will be having different events like haircuts, hula hoop contests, limbo and musical chairs.”

Pettit and Vaudt shared their goals for the day as well as their hopes. 

“So one of our goals is to not have it be about the money, but have it be about participation on campus and the people want to be there instead of have to be there,” Pettit said. “We kind of want everyone to buy into our cause and have it not be about raising money, but be about helping the kids.”

Getting people involved is another main goal.

“Awareness is one thing we have always struggled with,” Vaudt said. “This is our fifth year now. Just spreading awareness to people who don’t know what dance marathon is, is one of our biggest goals.”

Every year Dance Marathon takes place in the Kent Campus Center. This year there is a new theme and more activities designed to make Dance Marathon a fun experience for everyone involved. 

“Our event theme is a beach party so everything is kind of centered around that,” Pettit said. “We will be making tie blankets and having little tournaments like bags and spike ball in different areas of Kent. So if you want a break from the buzz that is in Black Box, we have those options for people.”

The co-directors know rewards incentivize more people to come to events.

“This is one thing that we started last year,” Vaudt said. “For different fundraising incentives, besides the fact that you get to be a part of this awesome organization. One fundraising incentive we developed is a rotating trophy.”

“One thing we have at the event is this big raffle where we have all of these prizes and people can buy raffle tickets throughout the day,” Pettit said. “We do the raffle drawing before we do the whole reveal. Last year we had a bunch of good prizes like Chick-Fil-A cards, unisex hairdressing cards and other nice prizes.”

Dance Marathon has a huge impact on kids and family members that benefit from the events. But it can have an even bigger impact on individuals that experience the day alongside the families. 

“It is kind of what I am going into studying and what I want to do when I grow up,” Pettit said. “I also just like to help people. I like to see people happy and the kids at the event and how happy they are. They just enjoy life and it’s really refreshing.”

All of Simpson’s Dance Marathon information can be found at dancemarathon.com. Students can scan QR codes on posters hanging in Kent to sign up. They also have social media pages where students can find all of the information leading up to the event on March 7. 

Vaudt says the event is about more than just dance, it’s about what you learn from others.

“It is incredible because they can teach you so many things just coming to these events like, one of the biggest things for me is, there are these kids that come and participate with their families for these events and they are in better moods than people I see every day,” Vaudt said. “It just teaches you a life lesson that you can’t take life for granted and you have to live every day like it’s your last.”

Students can still sign up for Dance Marathon until two hours after the event has started. They can reach out to either of the co-directors or Breanna Waugh. If students have any questions, don’t be afraid to ask any of the executive team members via Simpson email.