12 Hour and 10 minute Event to Raise Funds and Awareness
for Wolfson Children’s Hospital and UF Health Jacksonville
Dance Marathon at the University of North Florida (UNF) will be hosting its tenth annual event on Saturday, March 3, 2018 from 10 a.m. to 10:10 p.m. at the UNF Field House. Proceeds benefit the two local Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals – Wolfson Children’s Hospital and the pediatric programs at UF Health Jacksonville.
To honor of all children being treated at the local CMN Hospitals, students will stay on their feet for 12 hours and 10 minutes. The 12 hours signify the typical shift of dedicated hospital staff while the 10 minutes tributes the event’s tenth year in the Jacksonville community. To keep dancers motivated, miracle children impacted by the hospitals will make special visits throughout the day to share their unique journey and interact with all participants. There will also be games, entertainment and, of course, dancing!
Opening ceremonies begin at 10 a.m. and are free and open to the public. After 11 a.m., visitors are asked to donate $5 per hour at the door to CMN Hospitals. The event concludes in a symbolic closing ceremony with miracle children cutting off the dancers’ ID bands beginning at 9:30 p.m.
There will be four local high schools that will be hosting their own dance marathon’s later in their school year! Those four high schools include, Bartram Trail, Bishop Kenney, Episcopal and Ponte Vedra. The total amount the high schools raise will be going toward UNF’s grand total, which will be given straight to the local hospitals.
Dance Marathon is a nationwide movement involving college and high school students at more than 300 schools. These students spend a year learning invaluable leadership and life skills while raising funds and interacting with children’s hospital patients and families. More students participate in Dance Marathon than any other student-led philanthropy in the United States. Since its founding in 1991, this movement has raised more than $80 million for CMN Hospitals.
For more information on how to get involved or donate, go to unfdm.com. Contact Nikki Sabol for UNF Dance Marathon or high school Dance Marathon press opportunities.
ABOUT UNF DANCE MARATHON
Started at the University of North Florida in 2008, UNF Dance Marathon team and students have raised more than $160,000 for CMN Hospitals. All of the funds raised by the students stays local at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and the pediatric programs at UF Health Jacksonville. UNF Dance Marathon’s motto is “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop” especially when it is “FTK-For The Kids!”
ABOUT CHILDREN’S MIRACLE NETWORK-JACKSONVILLE
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals is dedicated to improving the health and welfare of all children by raising funds and awareness for Wolfson Children’s Hospital and the pediatric programs at UF Health Jacksonville. A founding principle of CMN Hospitals is that all funds raised in a community stay in that community. Therefore, all donations made in Northeast Florida/Southeast Georgia are used to purchase medical equipment, child life activities and educational resources for both local pediatric programs. Learn more at CMNJax.com.
