The organizers of OttoTHON, Syracuse University’s first dance marathon, are hoping to fundraise $105,000, which would be a record for a first-time dance marathon.

OttoTHON, which is in support of the Children’s Miracle Network, will kick off at the end of the month. The dancing will start at 6 p.m. on Feb. 28 and won’t end until March 1 at 6 a.m.

All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital and will help cover the cost families at the hospital incur from medical bills that aren’t covered by their insurance. The money also goes toward baby formula, diapers, scholarships for children’s camps and support to parents of children at the hospital who died. Funds are also used to update medical equipment and technology in the wellness facilities, according to the OttoTHON website.

The event will include a viewing of the SU men’s basketball game against Duke University that night.

The event’s popularity forced its organizers to reserve more space in SU’s Women’s Building. Members of the Syracuse community can register to participate in OttoTHON for $10 at OttoTHON.org. Each participant is encouraged to fundraise $100 from family and friends in order to reach the program’s goal of $105,000, according to the OttoTHON website. People can also donate through the website.

If the goal is met, OttoTHON will break the Children’s Miracle Network’s national dance marathon fundraising record for a first-time event, Amelia Stalknecht, the finance chair for OttoTHON and a sophomore math education major, said in an email.

As of Feb. 8, Stalknecht said, there were approximately 850 people registered for the event. Stalknecht predicted about 900 would be registered by Feb. 28. Due to the high rate of registration, Stalknecht said OttoTHON is focusing more on getting every dancer to raise $100 rather than recruiting more participants for the event.

Some of the hospital’s residents will also be joining the marathon. Children and families have been invited to the event to share their personal stories, Stalknecht said.

Amanda Winograd, a senior broadcast and digital journalism major who donated money to the event for a friend who’s participating, said OttoTHON is a good cause for SU to get involved in.

She also said the cost and fundraising goal was realistic enough for the average student as “parents are likely to help for a good cause.”

Stalknecht is optimistic about reaching the fundraising goal, saying she hopes OttoTHON will become the new dance marathon fundraising record holder. This record would mean a lot to the university and its reputation.

“Earlier this year, our school was No. 1 for being the best at partying which gave a negative tone to our campus for some people,” Stalknecht said. “By breaking the record for the most money raised at a first-year dance marathon could mean that our school can get positive recognition for our accomplishments.”

This event means more to the Syracuse community than one would think, and it has the potential to “make OttoTHON a legacy,” Stalknecht said.

As dance marathons gained popularity, Jillian Lynch, the executive director of OttoTHON, capitalized on an opportunity for SU to join the movement. Lynch, a former columnist for The Daily Orange, created a committee of about 40 members, including 15 student board members, that has been working during the past year to launch OttoTHON.

Lynch said it was a “long process working with student services,” but she stayed positive and added that her goal was to “make a lasting tradition.”

Stalknecht said she is looking forward to “experiencing the energy and the emotional aspects” of the event. It’s crucial for the surrounding community to realize the struggle that goes on every day just down the street at the children’s hospital, she added.

“We aren’t there to just have a good time,” Stalknecht said in an email. “We are there to dance and to keep looking for miracles one dollar at a time. We dance for the kids.”

Published on February 12, 2015 at 12:01 am

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