The 12-hour dance marathon, BobcaThon, raise $18,173.13 to be donated to the Ronald McDonald House
Senior Mackenzie Leskovec cried as Ohio University’s first ever 12-hour dance marathon, BobcaThon, ended and the total fundraised amount was announced: $18,173.13.
It was pretty surprising to Leskovec, president of the organization and a senior studying child life, considering it had only raised about $4,000 at the beginning of the month.
The dance marathon, which raised money for the Ronald McDonald House, lasted from 12 p.m. Saturday to 12 a.m. Sunday, in the Baker Center Ballroom. Participants were asked to stay standing throughout the event as they danced, listened to performances and also to the families who have been impacted by the Ronald McDonald House charities.
The Ronald McDonald House helps house families of seriously ill children by providing them a place to stay, food and other hospitality needs so families don’t have worry about those issues. The money BobcaThon raised could be used to provide 22,679 hot showers or 908 nights for families to stay.
“I’m just at a loss for words,” Leskovec said. “I really enjoyed seeing the friendships that were made on the teams and I was just — I don’t have any words.”
The whole idea began with Carly Dammon, a 2014 OU alumna, after she interviewed for an internship with the Ronald McDonald House. She is now community fundraising associate for the organization.
After handing off the role of president, Dammon continued to work with the group as the planning persisted throughout this year.
“It’s been so awesome seeing what the students have done with it,” Dammon said. “I’m so proud.”
Throughout the day, themed music hours and performances kept the momentum going, including performances by the Tempo Tantrums, the Marching 110 drumline and dance team.
Nathan Harvey, a sophomore studying integrated media, said he was as the morale leader of the “blue” team, trying to get them pumped up and leading them in chants and dances.
“I was a little skeptical at first but it feels good to be a part of something bigger,” Harvey said.
Many of the participant’s favorite parts of the day, including freshman Danielle Fosselman, was seeing families come and talk throughout the day regarding their experiences with the Ronald McDonald House.
“(I think it’s important to participate) to raise awareness for the Ronald McDonald House because I didn’t know what they were before this happened,” Fosselman, a psychology major, said. “I liked how they brought in the families because we got to see first hand who stayed there.”
Shelby Baker, a sophomore studying marketing, said he didn’t know if he was going to last for all 12 hours. Baker said it’s an important cause to have the money go toward.
“My mom stayed in the Ronald McDonald House when her little sister died,” Baker said. “So I know how important it is. ... It’s just an amazing resource.”
As the executive team told the crowd to take a seat after 12 hours, the crowd let out a sigh of relief and collapsed to the floor.
Baker and Fosselman all said they would want to participate in future dance marathons. As for what’s in store for BobcaThon, Leskovec said she just wants to see it grow.
“It’s definitely something that I think everybody here is going to remember for a really long time,” Leskovec said. “Seeing our goal and what we achieved today just shows us we can do anything we set our minds to. We’re going to leave a legacy.”
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