It was a record-breaking year for F-M High School’s Dance Marathon. On March 21, students surpassed their goal to raise $100,000 for Camp Good Days and Special Times by $67,921.
The not-for-profit provides summer camp experiences for children whose lives have been affected by a cancer diagnosis and sickle cell anemia. It costs about $800 to send a child to camp.
“It is a surreal feeling to host such an amazing event and facilitate a prolonged operation with it culminating in a historic moment. The check reveal was the main event and an electric moment,” shared Student Council President Liam Newton. ”We are incredibly grateful for the community’s support and are ecstatic to send 208 kids to camp.”
“It was absolutely amazing. Seeing the kids at camp having fun with us and others is genuinely life-changing. Knowing that our efforts can send even more kids to camp is just spectacular,” shared Masters of Ceremonies member Elizabeth Monroe.
The Dance Marathon is a longtime tradition at F-M, students have been hosting the event for more than 30 years. Each year, students start preparing for the fundraiser at the beginning of the school year. In the fall, a new group of Masters of Ceremonies (MCs) are chosen from the senior class by the Student Council. They are tasked with organizing a months-long campaign, culminating with the Dance Marathon event.
“Throughout the year, we held a variety of fundraisers, including things like a handball tournament, cupcake sale, MC head shaving, Tully’s night with 10% of sales being donated, blood drives, apparel sales and yoga sessions,” shared Monroe. “We also fundraised door-to-door whenever we were free and reached out to local businesses.”
“It took persistence when contacting businesses, friends, family, and other members of the community to see if they would support Camp Good Days,” explained Newton.
Students say the Dance Marathon itself was a huge hit. One of the highlights involved taking a break from dancing for a handball tournament including around 30 teams.
“Everyone was super competitive and engaged,” explained Monroe. “The dancing and performances were spectacular, and performing our dance one last time was incredible.”
Students were also recognized for raising the most money for Camp Good Days. The top three fundraisers were announced at the event and were awarded prizes. When asked about their biggest takeaway though, students say it’s the memories they made.
“My favorite part of this process was spending this period of time with amazing people who genuinely cared about the cause as well. It was rewarding to see the excitement on campers faces when they heard how much money we raised,” shared Masters of Ceremonies member Maizie Giammichele. “I hope the underclassmen look up to us as role models the way we all looked up to the 2023 DMMCs and will think of us as they go through their high school years.”
If you would like to learn more about Camp Good Days and Special Times, you can visit their website here.
