Courtney Mickel staffs a Four Diamonds Fund table on March 21 in the Duquesne Student Union. Four Diamonds is hosting a mini THON fundraiser dance March 25 .
Courtney Mickel staffs a Four Diamonds Fund table on March 21 in the Duquesne Student Union. Four Diamonds is hosting a mini THON fundraiser dance March 25 .
Liza Zulick | Staff Writer
Every day, 43 children are diagnosed with cancer, and twelve percent of those diagnosed do not survive, according to CureSearch for Children’s Cancer. A group at Duquesne hopes to raise money to help better those children’s odds.
Four Diamonds, a charitable group which fundraises for child cancer patients, will host the second annual mini-THON at Duquesne University March 25 from 5:00 to 11:00 p.m. to raise money for children with cancer at Penn State Children’s Hospital in Hershey. The event is mirrored after the annual THON event at Penn State, which also raises money for pediatric cancer.
According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, families of children with cancer have debts between $8,000 and $53,000. All proceeds from the mini-THON benefit the Four Diamonds Fund. This non-profit organization helps children afflicted with cancer pay for medical bills at the Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital.
Any money left over goes toward extra support staff such as music therapists and on site cancer research.
Last year, 80 Duquesne students participated in the dance marathon.
“We’re proud of the money we’ve raised so far and can’t wait to see what we raise on Saturday. We’re all about helping the kids,” Eric Herrmann, a senior information systems management major and chair of the Four Diamonds promotions committee, said.
According to Jamie Crain, a senior marketing major and one of the creators of the Duquesne mini-THON, not many students have an issue dancing for six hours. Students are allowed to take breaks and enjoy the food and drinks provided.
“We’re not super strict on enforcement,” Crain said. “In the next few years, this will be more of a goal, but for now we just want to familiarize people with what we do.”
Raffles will also take place every hour during the marathon. Gift cards, tickets to Pittsburgh events, baskets and autographs from Zach Galifianakis, actor and comedian, and the cast of “The Flash.”
According to Herrmann, stretching is an important part of this marathon.
“Our goal is to have everyone dancing all night so people need to be nice and loose,” she said. “Our DJ will be keeping the energy high, and we’ll even have a line dance prepared that we’ll be teaching all of the attendees.”
Herrmann added that students should have a great time.
“If you love dancing and raising money for a great cause there is no reason you won’t have a great time,” he said. “Combine that with all the food we’re having and that’s a value you can’t get anywhere else for our admission price.”
A table for students to register will be available all week from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. The price to join is $10 per person or $8 per person for a team of five or more. Participants can sign up at the door.
