This past Saturday, Greek Life organizations at Binghamton University raised over $25,000 at the fifth annual Dance Marathon for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

The fundraiser, held in the Mandela Room, raised money to support local children at the Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Miracle Network Hospital in Danville, Pennsylvania. The seven-hour event was open to all, and featured a live DJ, inflatable games and pizza and drinks for those who danced.

Attendees could spin a wheel and win a prize, jump in a ball pit or challenge each other to an inflatable maze race. The Dance Marathon Committee handed out tattoos that featured the dance marathon’s slogan, “FTK,” which stands for “For The Kids,” and they created a dance for everyone to learn to kick off the nonstop dancing event.

Thomas Severin, graduate assistant for Fraternity & Sorority Life and adviser of the Dance Marathon Planning Committee, said he was excited to be part of this event, as it promotes Greek Life philanthropy not limited to just one chapter.

“It’s really amazing being able to give back to our community and our nearby hospitals,” Severin said.

Alyssa Boylan, relations chair of the Dance Marathon Committee and a sophomore, said that that this event is particularly important for her, as a friend of hers died of brain cancer.

“Because of my friend, I felt that this was a really cool event for me to become involved with,” Boylan said. “It is a nation-wide event so it is much bigger than just a Binghamton [University] campus event. There was also a lot more involvement this year which was our goal.”

Erin Dougan, chair of the Dance Marathon Committee and a senior double-majoring in history and physics, said that she had a great time raising money for the Children’s Miracle Network, because it’s a cause that all of Greek Life can get behind.

“It is a great way for us to come together as a community in ways that we don’t always get to,” Dougan said. “Students are able to hang out with people who aren’t necessarily in the same organization while doing something for a great cause.”

Dougan said that she believes the event could eventually become a campus-wide tradition in the future.

“It doesn’t have to be limited to the Greek system; I want sports teams, club teams, housing communities, and all on-campus residents to become involved,” Dougan said. “I want this to be bigger and to hopefully one day take place in the Events Center.”

Emily Lahm, an undeclared freshman, said that this is her first dance marathon at BU, but she’s excited for the future of the fundraiser.

“Community service is super important to me and I love to dance and have fun with my friends, so if I can do that while raising money for children, then this was an incredible opportunity I was not going to miss,” Lahm said. “So many people were here and it’s honestly amazing to see people come out on their Saturday afternoons to raise money. I definitely recommend that people come out in the future because this was a perfect way to spend my Saturday.”