Dance Marathon is a nation-wide fundraising movement that raises money for local hospitalized children. High schools and colleges across the nation host their own Dance Marathon events to benefit their nearest Children's Miracle Network Hospital, and since its inception the program has raised over $300 million for hospitalized children across North America.

 

Dance Marathon first came to Missouri State University in 2019, and I was lucky enough to be on the first executive board of our Dance Marathon program, DMatMoState. In order to raise money for the kids, DMatMoState hosts events and fundraises throughout the year, which culminates in a final event where we spend time with our Miracle Kids, do some final fundraising, and reveal our final total. In DMatMoState's first year, I served as the Campus Life Recruitment Coordinator. In this position, I was responsible for recruiting campus organizations to form teams and fundraise for the kids in the hospital. This proved to be a challenge, as it was difficult to convince people to join a new program that they were unfamiliar with. This challenge became even more difficult when the COVID-19 pandemic sent all of our students home. Despite these challenges, our team managed to raise $25,000 for the kids at our local hospital, CoxHealth. In addition to the immense impact we were able to make on our Miracle Kids' lives, I also learned valuable lessons due to the challenges we faced because of COVID-19 such as perseverance, adaptability, and the ability to think outside of the box.

 

Raising $25,000 during a pandemic was such an inspiring experience that I decided to return to the executive board as the External Director for DMatMoState 2020-2021. In this position, I oversaw a team of 5 that focused on managing social media efforts, recruitment, special events, and graphic design. This position gave me extensive experience in creating a strong team environment and maintaining team morale despite facing numerous challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. I also gained leadership skills as well as knowledge from each aspect of my team, including planning events, managing social media, creating graphics, and recruiting participants in our program. I also was very thankful for the ability to spend more time with our Miracle Kids and get to know them on a personal level during DMatMoState 2020-2021. 

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I am excited to join the DMatMoState Executive Board once again next year as the Public Relations Coordinator. I believe this position will give me more applicable experience in the field I hope to go into. Being a part of something as powerful as DMatMoState has truly changed my life, and I can't wait to see what DMatMoState will accomplish next year.