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Dance Marathon is the largest student-run organization on the University of Iowa campus and has raised over $27.5 million in its 26 year history.
The organization is made up of student “dancers” whose primary role is to fundraise and attend a literal dance marathon, called the “Big Event,” in February of each year. Student leaders help conduct the Big Event and organize other events during the rest of the year.
“We fundraise year-round for the patients and families being treated, or that have been treated, on the 11th floor of the Stead Family Children’s Hospital, which supports pediatric oncology and bone marrow transplants,” said Erin Glenn, the Public Relations Director for Iowa’s Dance Marathon.
Participants raise money through sponsorships, donations, merchandise sales and Mini-Dance Marathons that high schools host throughout the state.
Common fundraising strategies include social media outreach and selling goods like baked treats around the community, Glenn said. Dance Marathon participants can also take part in canning, where they go door-to-door to ask for donations or attend events like Hawkeye football games and ask attendees for contributions.
Carlyn Mann is a student at the University of Iowa participating in Dance Marathon for the first time.
“I first noticed an impact on the community when I went canning before the last home football game,” Mann said. “As my partner and I walked around asking for donations, we noticed how kind people were to us even though we were interrupting their tailgate and asking for money. People would thank us for trying to raise money for the kids and I realized how much everyone cared.”
Another favored fundraising strategy among participants is to host community days at restaurants in Iowa City or in their hometowns, Glenn said. When a business agrees to host a community day, a percentage of their profits go toward Dance Marathon.
Once a year, Dance Marathon also conducts the “Day to DM”, a 26.2 hour time period where participants ramp up fundraising to represent a fundraising marathon.
“It’s a day where everyone comes together and you fight to fundraise as much money as you can,” Glenn said.
This year’s Day to DM goal was to raise $500,000 in the 26.2 hour period. Dance Marathon members surpassed this goal and raised over $600,000 on the Day to DM. This fundraising surge is encouraging to both the families and students involved, because it demonstrates how impactful the organization can be, Glenn said.
Denise Zimmerman is a longtime Iowa fan who has donated to Dance Marathon in the past.
“I’ve decided to donate to Dance Marathon in the past because of the crucial financial support they provide to pediatric oncology patients and their families treated at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital,” Zimmerman said. “I’m happy to support the students in such a great effort.”
Around 91.2% donations go directly to families, the Stead Family Children’s Hospital and pediatric oncology research, according to Iowa’s Dance Marathon website. Around 8.3% of donations go toward operating costs for Dance Marathon.
One popular allocation of funds is the DM diners program, Glenn said. This program gives families of inpatient children gift cards to nearby restaurants every Wednesday to both alleviate one financial burden and help the families to take a break from the hospital atmosphere and cafeteria.
Dance Marathon has also directed money toward specific projects at the Stead Family Children’s Hospital, Glenn said. Two of the larger projects in recent years have been allocating funds for a full-time child life specialist for the 11th floor, which hosts pediatric oncology patients, and raising money for a new MRI machine for the entire hospital.
Lillian Poulsen is a second-year student at the University of Iowa and serves as a lime captain this year for Dance Marathon. As a lime captain, Poulsen helps lead a team of dancers and assists them in fundraising. The title comes from Dance Marathon’s branding color, lime green.
“Our mission is to help families who are battling pediatric cancer with their kids and our goal is basically just to help raise money and to financially and emotionally support these families,” Poulsen said.
In addition to financial support, Dance Marathon provides emotional support to patients and their families.
Dance Marathon volunteers can be found on the 11th floor of the Stead Family Children’s hospital during most visiting hours to play with children and give parents a break, Glenn said. Siblings and teens can also find emotional support from Dance Marathon through programs created specifically for them.
To connect families and students, Dance Marathon hosts nine family events each year, Glenn said. At these events, students and families spend time together doing activities, playing games and building relationships.
For students and families who want to know each other on a deeper level, Dance Marathon has a program that will pair a student up with a family that they will contact every couple weeks. Glenn said that some students have built strong relationships with families through this program that they still have today.
Leading up to the event, Dance Marathon hosts dancer meetings monthly where students rally for the upcoming weeks and hear from a family that has been impacted by pediatric cancer.
“One of the most impactful moments so far this year has been at the first dancer meeting and hearing a family tell us their story. I felt chills the entire night,” Mann said.
Ultimately, everything that Dance Marathon does throughout the year leads up to what they call the “Big Event.” This year’s Big Event will be on February 7th and 8th. The Big Event is a celebration with no sitting, if able, no sleeping and no caffeine held within the Iowa Memorial Union.
“If the families can do this fight then you can stand for 24 hours,” Glenn said.
At the Big Event, there is a family speaker for each hour to keep dancers inspired. There are also performing acts brought in, organized dances and activities to keep everybody busy, Glenn said.
Many families come back for the Big Event and participants can find kids running around and hanging out with students. Glenn said that the kids love when students play games with them or teach them how to dance.
“The Big Event is a huge way for people to interact with families so freely and so openly,” Glenn said.
In order to attend the Big Event, dancers have to raise at least $500 throughout the year.
“It’s a great big celebration of all of the work you have done throughout the year to help these families, and it also incentivizes you to raise a little bit more money, and to see and meet the families that you’re actually impacting,” Poulsen said.
“We have so much bigger of an impact than many people realize, even people who are in the organization.”
With over 2,500 students involved and 1,000 families being impacted, Dance Marathon influences the lives of many in Iowa City and throughout Iowa.
Dance Marathon makes an impact on the community by bringing together people who all want to unite to support one cause, Glenn said.
Traditions on campus also pay tribute to the kids on the 11th floor and involve community members who may not be directly involved in the Dance Marathon. One example is the famous wave tradition at Iowa football games where the crowd, teams and referees turn to wave to the hospital patients at the end of the first quarter.
Zach Wright is a second-year student and Dance Marathon participant who serves on the financial committee this year.
“I think a lot of student life revolves around those children,” Wright said.
Any students who want to join the organization can register online. Dance Marathon’s hospital director invites families to take part in the organization after they receive a diagnosis of pediatric cancer at Stead Family Children’s hospital.
Dance Marathon collects donations year-round, and members reveal the total amount raised at the end of the Big Event. To donate to Iowa’s Dance Marathon, visit Dance Marathon’s website or keep an eye out for fundraising events in your community.
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