Volume 2, Issue 4 November 2010

The mission of The UNC Dance Marathon is to unite the University, community and state in fostering emotional
and financial support that improves the quality of life for the patients, families and staff of N.C. Children’s Hospital.

Upcoming
Events "Those who hear not the
music think the dancers
Nov. 3: McAlister’s Per-
centage Night are mad."
From 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
at 205 E. Franklin St.
— Chinese Proverb
Nov. 7: Lazy Afternoon
Come to the SASB
Plaza from 1 p.m. to What’s Up This Month?
3:30 p.m. for food,
games and music by
Catie King
“I hope you dance...”
Nov. 8-12: Dancer Re- Two dancers who have gone the extra mile share their
cruitment Week inspirational stories from last year. Molly Sutherland
See Page 2
Sign up to dance in
the pit and online at
uncmarathon.org! Lazy Days Pediatric Playroom — September 2010

Nov. 21: Vermonster Lazy Afternoon will kick off Dancer Recruitment Week
6 p.m. at Ben & Jerry’s
with entertainment, food and a chance to learn about How to survive UNC-DM 2011:
UNC-DM.
on Franklin Street 1. Sleep all day Friday before the event.
See Page 3 2. Bring glow sticks to have a dance party
with your friends
Spotlight: Center for Clinical 3. Continuously invent new dance moves
"The Dragon is a Excellence so you can try them all out and never be
mascot of peace and tired of doing the same dance!
good luck in the eyes A grant from UNC-DM helps patients and families get
of the Chinese peo- more one-on-one time with hospital staff.
ple, no matter where See Page 4
they live in the world.
Dragon Dancing per- ‘Fore’ the Kids
For the Kids Story
formances are cus- Serena is a 12-year-old girl who spent al-
Beautiful weather brought more than 50 golfers to the
tomary at events such most a month at UNC Hospitals for diag-
5th annual Homecoming Golf Classic.
as festivals, celebra-
tions, benedictions,
See Page 5 nosis of severe stomach pain. She was
memorial ceremo- diagnosed with and treated for Crohn’s
nies and temple fairs. Disease. With limited family income and
More than 100 differ-
assistance from Medicaid, her mother
ent Dragon Dances
have developed over
Presence in the Hospital could not afford food in the hospital. She
thousands of years of In addition to weekly Parents’ Night Out was unable to work during the hospitaliza-
performance, which
and Healthy Steps, we started Thursday tion and was very grateful for the assis-
includes men running
through the streets night family pizza dinners through the For tance the For the Kids Fund provided with
with a huge dragon the Kids Fund. We held a social with a Fall the cost of meals in the hospital.
prop and fireworks and
Festival theme with face painting, fishing
drums.”
for prizes and pumpkin painting.
2 UNC-DM Newsletter
Come Dance with these stars Emily Evans
Last year 1600 students signed up to dance in support of the patients and families at N.C. Children’s Hospital. After
24 hours of dancing,eating, performing and celebrating, these dancers stood out for their extra effort for the kids.

Lisa Santiago
Lisa Santiago (right in photo) has participated as a dancer
at every marathon since she’s been at UNC-Chapel Hill.
“I love to dance and act crazy, so when given the chance
to do that for 24 hours straight with over a thousand other
people and for a great cause, of course I was going to be
there,” she said.
But Santiago didn’t just stay on her feet for 24 hours.
She’s also a member of the Star Heels dance group and
participated in their performance at last year’s marathon.
“The opportunity to perform during DM was presented to
us pretty early and at the time I figured I might as well
do it since I would already be there,” she said. “It wasn’t
until later that I realized I would be performing in two
dances around the half way point.”
Courtesy of Lisa Santiago
Though it was tiring, Santiago said it was worth the ex-
tra effort to help motivate her fellow dancers. “It was
Santiago said she can’t wait for this year’s marathon.
definitely a challenge and a pretty exhausting experi-
ence, especially afterward when the adrenaline rush of “There’s something about being in an exhausted state of
performing on stage had gone away, but it was a lot fun,” mind while dancing like fools all in order to achieve this
she said. greater common goal that really brings people together.”

Joy Monet
Sophomore Joy Monet left her
mark as a dancer at The 2010
UNC Dance Marathon as a fresh-
man dancer last year—she was
the number two fundraiser for
the whole marathon.
“I was inspired to be involved in
the marathon because I really
wanted to get involved in some-
thing that would help others,”
she said. “I saw the committee
leaders in the Pit and they were
so energetic and passionate
about what they were doing that
it made me want to be a part of
the marathon.”
Monet said that to raise funds for
the marathon, she sent e-mails
and letters to friends and family
both near and far that explained
the cause and asked them to do-
nate any funds they were able.
“I found that most people were
happy to donate to such a great
cause,” she said.
Monet did not know she was the
number two fundraiser until the
day of the marathon.
“I was really excited to know
that all the money I raised was
going to help so many families,”
she said.
After her great experience last
year, Monet, too, is excited to
participate in the marathon this
year.
She’ll continue her fundraising
efforts, she said, and looks for-
ward to 24 hours of standing on
her feet for the kids.
“One of my favorite memories
was hearing the stories of the
families who benefited from the
money raised from the Dance
Marathon. It was great to know
Courtesy of Joy Monet
how great of an impact we
made.”
3 UNC-DM Newsletter
Catch THE CRAZE AT LAZY Afternoon
Margot Pien
The UNC Dance Marathon is bringing new energy to the be-
ginning of Dancer Recruitment Week with Lazy Afternoon,
an event filled with music, dance performances, food and
games.
Admission is free to the event, which will take place from 1
to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov.. 7 on the Student Academic Ser-
vices Building Plaza. However, attendees can purchase food
and hot chocolate to combat the cool November weather
while enjoying cornhole, ladder golf and Frisbee.
Through the brand-new event, Campus Fundraising chair
Galen Cook said she hopes to recruit underclassmen on
South campus and encourage them to get involved in UNC-
DM.
“It’s an opportunity to target South campus residents on
their home turf, potentially making them more comfort-
able. This way they may be more likely to ask questions,”
Cook said.
The music and dance performances should be a big draw for
the event, Cook said. UNC-CH sophomore Catie King, who
plays simple, lyric-driven rock-acoustic music, will perform
along with other student bands. UNC-CH step teams Born 2
Step and Phi Beta Sigma will also perform.
King said she is excited to play at Lazy Afternoon and hopes
to make a difference for UNC-DM.
“I think my performance can help the UNC-DM cause by
helping to draw attention to the Lazy Afternoon,” King said.
“I have amazing friends and fans that really come through
to support me at all of my shows.”
“ Yes, UNC-DM is a lot of yell-
ing, dancing, soliciting for
money, in-your-face-recruit-
ing...However, I want them to
realize that it’s so much more
than that. “ Galen Cook
Campus Fundraising sub-chair Brooklyn Stephens said she
was optimistic about what the music and step performances
can offer to students.
“I think they will have a better understanding of what UNC-
DM is about and be able to get a taste of the some of the
amazing talent that will be at UNC-DM,” she said.
Cook said her ultimate goal is that students at the Lazy Af-
ternoon event will see that UNC-DM is an organization that
they can be passionate about and with which they can get
involved.
“Yes, UNC-DM is a lot of yelling, dancing, soliciting for mon-
ey, in-your-face-recruiting, ticket sales, ice cream, cos-
tumes and bar nights,” Cook said. “However, I want them
to realize that it’s so much more than that. I want them to
realize how much UNC-DM has shaped our lives, and that it
can do the same for them.”
Check out our blog for more information closer to the event
at uncdm.wordpress.com.

Connecting to the Cause

The Publicity and Corpo-
rate Marketing committees
participate in one of UNC-
DM’s new programs this
year: the hospital tour. In
order to better understand
how the year-long efforts of
UNC-DM help the patients
and families of N.C. Chil-
dren’s Hospital, commit-
tees toured several areas of
the hospital, including the
7th floor Play Atrium, the
Teen Activity Center, the
neo-natal intensive care
unit and the helipad on the
roof. “I really learned what
‘For the Kids’ means,” said
publicity committee mem-
Spencer Bakalar
ber Victoria Cook.
4 UNC-DM Newsletter
Spotlight
Three years ago, Patience Leino was a
familiar face at N.C. Children’s Hospi-
tal. She and her husband stayed with
their son around the clock during his
treatment.
“My husband and I established a re-
lationship with the staff,” Leino said.
“The hospital was like a home during
those 24 weeks.”
Now, Leino serves as a Family Adviser
to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
(PICU) and collaborates with hospital
staff through N.C. Children’s Center
for Clinical Excellence’s Improving Pe-
diatric Critical Care Program.
This initiative, funded by a 2010 UNC
Dance Marathon grant, works in col-
laboration with the Patient Relations
Department at UNC Hospitals to de-
velop a robust family-centered care
program.
According to the website, familycen-
teredcare.org, family-centered care
is “an innovative approach to the
planning, delivery and evaluation of
health care that is grounded in mu-
tually beneficial partnerships among
health care providers, patients and
families.”
McDougie with McDougle
Students from McDougle Elementary
School show off their dance moves in
their own Mini-Marathon. The event
brought about 50 students to the Mc-
Dougle gymnasium for their ‘Lights
On After School’ program. Partici-
pants played knock out, four-square,
danced and made cards for the pa-
tients and families at N.C. Children’s
Hospital. The mini-marathon ended
in a 15-minute dance session in
which all students danced together
before going home. Participants do-
nated books and stuffed animals that
can be distributed throughout the
hospital.
Center for Clinical Excellence
Emily Tracy
PICU Family-Centered Care Special-
ist Brooke Gleason is also part of
the Improving Pediatric Critical Care
Program team and explained that at-
tentive, collaborative care between
patients, families and health care
providers helps reduce the length of
hospital stays.
“We are trying to create standardized
rounds so a family can get updates at
the same time every day about their
child,” Gleason said. “It’s been shown
that better communication has a posi-
tive correlation with a shorter stay at
the hospital.”
Only approximately 50 percent of
families currently get daily contact
with hospital workers, something N.C.
Children’s Center for Clinical Excel-
lence wants to change, with a goal of
increasing family satisfaction by 20
percent and decreasing complaints by
50 percent, as measured by surveys.
In one of many efforts to incite these
positive changes, funds from The UNC
Dance Marathon grant have helped
the hospital create patient informa-
tion folders that give information to
patients’ families such as a map of
Chapel Hill and a guide to local res-
taurants. There is also a kid-friendly
version of this map.
So far, the program has been suc-
cessful. The last survey conducted by
the hospital was given to 27 patients
and all but one said they would rec-
ommend the hospital to family and
friends, said Dr. Tina Willis, medical
director of the PICU and co-director
of N.C. Children’s Center for Clinical
Excellence.
The partnership between The UNC
Dance Marathon and N.C. Children’s
Center for Clinical Excellence is in its
second year, and in the past year and
a half, many positive Quality Improve-
ment outcomes have already been
achieved.
In its first year, the Improving Pedi-
atric Critical Care Program set goals
to further reduce hospital-acquired
infections, improve communication
systems and partner with families to
improve safety. Thanks to the hard
work and commitment of the PICU
team, there have now been more than
200 Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia
-free days in the PICU, a new record
and standard for patient care at N.C.
Children’s Hospital.
Michelle Kasprak
5 UNC-DM Newsletter
Golfers putt ‘fore’ the Kids
A beautiful autumn day, a Chick-fil-A
lunch and a great cause helped pave
the way to a successful start to Home-
coming weekend for The UNC-Dance
Marathon.
On Oct. 29, 56 golfers went to The
Preserve at Jordan Lake Golf Club to
play in the 5th Annual UNC-DM Home-
coming Golf Classic “fore” the kids.
Players came dressed in their golfing
best to play 18 holes, which included
contests for longest drive and putting
skills, and the chance to win a Porsche
Boxster.
Overall Coordinator Sarah Beth Wilki-
son said this year’s tournament was a
great success.
“I’d describe this tournament as a lot
of hard work and determination on
the part of the UNC Dance Marathon
Alumni Relations committee and a
good time had by all the golfers who
joined us,” she said in an e-mail. “It
is such a great way for us to fulfill our
mission of uniting not only our cam-
pus, but our community and state as
well, all ‘fore’ the kids.”
The hard work of the Alumni Relations
committee paid off, as many alumni
golfers who have played in the tour-
nament in the past brought first time
players along with them.
Kris Cullin and Blake Paro, both gradu-
ates of North Carolina State Univer-
Rebecca Brenner
One of 56 competitors at the 5th annual UNC-DM Homecoming Golf
Classic putts with an umbrella in the Unconventional Putting Contest.
sity, entered the event after encour-
agement and recommendations by
UNC alumni, proving that the rival
schools can come together for a wor-
thy cause.
“It was for a great cause and he’s very
passionate about it, so it was to sup-
port him and to support the cause,”
said Paro.
Second-time tournament golfer Bobby
Cale was drawn back to the tourna-
ment by Alumni Relations Chair Olivia
Murphy.
He said he first got involved in the
tournament last year because his
daughter Brooke is involved with UNC-
DM. This year, he said he came back
because of a call he received from
Murphy. She called to remind him of
the tournament and give him the in-
formation, and because he believes in
the organization’s cause, he gratefully
returned.
This tournament brought many other
golfers who had not participated in
the event previously, and all were
drawn by the cause that UNC-DM is
supporting.
“I think Dance Marathon is great,” said
UNC-CH senior Harrison McCaskill.
“Playing on a great day like this and
Victoria Cook
Michelle Kasprak
helping the kids all at the same time
­— you can’t get any better than that.”
Wilkison said the organization learned
a lot this during this year’s golf tour-
nament that they hope will help make
future golf tournaments even better.
“I think the most important lesson we
learned from this tournament is to get
started as early as possible,” she said
in an e-mail. “As the tournament is
traditionally held over Homecoming
weekend, crunch time approaches
quickly, and it would be great to re-
lieve some of that last minute stress
by getting a further head start.”
Before heading off to the greenway,
golfers were given a letter from a
patient at the N.C. Children’s Hospi-
tal thanking them for everything that
they do, reinforcing the idea that this
was all for the kids.
NEXT ISSUE:
Check out our Grant Spotlight on
the Hematology/Oncology Span-
ish Interpreter in December.
* If you have any questions comment or concerns contact 2011
Publicity Chair Rebecca Brenner at rbrenner@email.unc.edu