Dance Marathon unveils theme for spring

The week before Thanksgiving break, JHU Dance Marathon (DM) had its Reveal Week, kicking off registration and unveiling the theme for its eight-hour long event on March 1.

The group used the week to raise awareness about the event by releasing fun facts about the dance marathon in the spring. Through a promotional video, complete with students acting as gladiators, the club announced that this year’s theme would be “CARPE DM”. A flash mob on the Breezeway revealed this year’s fundraising goal of $30,000.

In addition to DM’s goal of raising $30,000, they aim to fill their venue — the Glass Pavilion — to capacity with about 350 participants.

“We are growing rapidly and hope to make this year the first really big increase in fundraising,” Alexandra Colt, co-president of DM at Hopkins, said.

DM is a nationwide organization, with chapters on various college campuses, which aims to raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network.

DM at Hopkins is an eight-hour long event where students try to stay active on their feet for the duration of the night. Besides dancing, the participants are kept on their feet through a number of activities including games, raffles, performances, a photo booth and other entertainment.

There are also theme-hours throughout the event to keep the dancers on their feet such as Viva Las Vegas, I Love the 90’s, Carpe DM, Luau, Bright and Tight and Wild, Wild West.

“No dance skills are necessary! Dancers need only to register, fundraise for the kids and stay on their feet through DM in March, all the while enjoying the event and the many things we have to offer,” co-president of JHU DM Anastasia Pierron said.

In addition to the aims of fundraising and increasing participation, each year DM features “Miracle Children” — children who have been treated at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center (JHCC) and who want to help other kids through their own inspiring stories.

“Another goal of ours this year is to further our relationship with Hopkins Children’s and the kids treated there. We have already made huge strides toward that goal by having two Miracle Kids for DM 2014,” Pierron said.

One of this year’s “Miracle Children” for DM at Hopkins is Anthony, whose last name was withheld in the interest of privacy. At the age of three, Anthony was diagnosed with leukemia and after three years of chemotherapy treatments he was pronounced cancer free in August 2010. Anthony says he has plans to become a famous NFL player until he gets too old to play, at which point he wants to become a doctor so that he can help other kids beat cancer.

DM at Hopkins began in fall 2010 and has since raised a total of about $29,000. The funds that DM at Hopkins raises go directly to the local branch of the Children’s Miracle Network, at the JHCC.

“DM at Hopkins is relatively very new compared to other schools, and hence, smaller. Our fundraising though is growing very quickly, on par or even ahead of the percentage increases of other new DMs. The nationwide DM community is a very cooperative one and we love sharing ideas and getting support from each other — it is not a competition between schools, but instead a collaborative effort to raise more and more funds for the kids every year,” Colt said.

The JHCC uses the funds from DM at Hopkins to support various programs that aid families, children at the hospital and patients entering foster care, such as “Backpacks for Foster Care”, “The NICU Car Seat Safety Project” and “Band-Aid Aid.”