Saint Mary’s College Dance Marathon (SMCDM) will hold a week of fundraising and awareness that will include giveaways, a talent show and a virtual auction for Riley Hospital for Children.
While SMCDM is most well known for their “Dance Marathon” fundraiser in the spring where students from Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s and Holy Cross Colleges come out to dance for nine hours without sitting down to “dance for those who can’t,” the club also hosts several fundraisers throughout the year, SMCDM chair of family outreach Kathleen Soller said.
This week, the club will host Riley Week to raise money and awareness for the hospital and specific patients that SMCDM sponsors. Riley Week also serves to get students excited about the upcoming Dance Marathon.
“SMCDM works hard year round to raise funds and awareness to support Riley Hospital for Children and Riley Kids from across northern Indiana. While COVID-19 has presented many challenges for SMCDM, we are devoted to our cause now more than ever because this is such a challenging time for families who face disease and illness everyday,” Soller said. “As a campus organization and proud members of the tri-campus community, we will continue to support Riley Kids and their families as we face unprecedented challenges and obstacles.”
With over 50 locations, Riley Children’s Health is Indiana’s largest pediatric system. The system collaborates with Indiana University School of Medicine, Indiana University School of Nursing and Indiana University School of Health and Human Services to provide quality care to pediatric patients.
Donations go toward a variety of areas within the hospital system. As a research institution, Riley physician-scientists benefit from the donations to continue finding ways to treat a variety of conditions including cancer, diabetes, heart defects and asthma.
Senior Alex Nemer, the president of SMCDM, said the club will host nightly hour long “pop-in” events beginning Monday which will include giveaways, talent shows and dancing. All the events will be held in Rice Commons in the Saint Mary’s College Student Center from 6-7 p.m., with the exception of Tuesday’s event, which will be held in Angela Athletic Facility in the performance gym.
Monday night’s event will be a giveaway with the theme “Now More than Ever We Support Riley.” On Tuesday, participants can learn a dance along with the SMCDM Morale Committee. The theme will be “Now More than Ever We are SMCDM.” Club members will present videos and information on Wednesday allowing students to learn more about Riley patients SMCDM sponsors.
On Thursday, SMCDM will host a talent show watch party, and the week will conclude Friday with a giveaway sponsored by Saint Mary’s Student Government Association (SGA), along with a virtual silent auction and open virtual registration for tri-campus students to sign up for the dance marathon.
“I am most excited to get the tri-campus community involved with SMCDM this week,” Nemer said. “I hope students come out to learn about our Riley families and how our efforts benefit Riley Hospital for Children. We want students to enjoy themselves and maybe even feel inspired to register.”
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