Day to DM is an annual fundraising and recruitment push day for Dance Marathon, in which we, as an organization, try to raise as much money as possible in 24 hours. Every dollar raised has a huge impact on the kids and their families fighting pediatric cancer at Stead, and this year was no different—Dance Marathon was able to raise $300,060.35 for pediatric cancer in just 24 hours!
The whole atmosphere of Day to DM was inspiring. The mission of Day to DM remained the same, but a virtual format was executed due to COVID-19 and prioritizing the health and safety of our students, families and community. In past years, dancers and leadership members would pack into the IMU for hours on end, fundraising, hitting the gong when a sizable donation was reached, and hyping each other up. This year, because of the pandemic, most of the fundraising either occurred individually or on a Zoom party. Dancers and leadership members could join the call and answer questions about fundraising, or just push everyone to reach out to donors. Even though we couldn’t physically be together in the IMU, seeing people’s faces and hearing them hype you up when you got a donation still made you want to fundraise more.
Besides hanging out on the Zoom party, other Dance Marathon members went out “flyering,” where they put fliers with their online giving link into people’s mailboxes around town. There were also community days done at Mickey’s, Dash, and Bread Garden, where everyone could grab a coffee or lunch and fuel up for the rest of the day.
Even though this Day to DM looked different than in previous years, that did not stop us from making an impact. These kiddos and their families deserve our full effort and that is what they got. Everyone in this organization worked so hard to make that number possible. Even though we were not able to see the tote board revealed in person, seeing it online was just as sweet. $300,060.35 is an amazing number that will go so far to help these families.
We are just getting started, Day to DM is just one day. We are going to continue to raise money for these kiddos and we will never quit, no matter what circumstances are thrown our way.
By: Sarah Schminke and Lilly Ries, Public Relations Committee, DM27
