Volume 2, Issue 2 September 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 To learn to dance by practicing dancing

or to learn to live by practicing living,
Events the principles are the same.
Sept. 6-10: Com-
~ Martha Graham
mittee Recruitment
Week — Sign up to
be on one of the 13
committees for The
2011 UNC Dance
Marathon. Keep an
eye out for applica-
What’s up this month?
tions online, via e-
mail and in the Pit.
Sept. 6-10: Penny Serving on committees:
Wars — Compete
with other dorms a memorable experience
to collect the most Four past committee members recall their motivation
pennies for UNC-DM.
for joining and their memories from working on UNC-
Sept. 17: Theme
DM committees.
Reveal and Bar
see pages 2-3
Sing — Join us at
Players from 9 p.m.
to midnight for a And the theme is … Pediatric Playroom — September 2007
capella music and Join UNC-DM for the exciting revelation of the 2010
the chance to be
For the Kids story
the first to learn this UNC-DM theme at Players Sept. 17.
year’s theme! see page 4
Sept. 6-10: Vermon-
ster — come eat 20 Evolution of a Dance Wayne is a 9-year-
old boy with obsessive-
stays in the hospital
with Wayne, as he is
scoops of Ben and The UNC Dance Marathon has come a long way since
Jerry’s ice cream compulsive disorder, very anxious when he
with friends from 6 1998, when founder Michael Bucy realized a personal attention deficit hyper- is left without a family
to 7 p.m. activity disorder, bipo- member.
dream.
see page 4 lar affective disorder, The family has a lim-
After the release borderline autism and ited income, slightly
of Tim Burton’s “Al-
ice in Wonderland”
Parents’ Night Out developmental delay.
Wayne has had many
augmented by Supple-
mental Security In-
The volunteers serving free food on Tuesdays in N.C. admissions to UNC come, which is reduced
in March 2010, The
Children’s Hospital fill more than hungry stomachs. Hospitals because of during prolonged hos-
Walt Disney corpora- digestive problems. pitalizations.
tion held a contest see page 5
During the most recent Due to the father
to find out who had admission, Wayne had missing work, the fam-
the best futterwack- surgery with compli- ily got behind in pay-
en dance. How to survive UNC-DM 2011: cations following sur- ment of their electric
Futterwacken gery. bill. The For the Kids
means to dance with 1. Bring a friend. “We all need somebody to Wayne also has a Fund paid the electric
unbridled joy, simil- lean on!” twin brother with spe- bill, helped with food
iar to how all UNC- cial needs, who has costs and provided
2. Do handstands against the wall —
DM dancers feel trouble coping without phone cards for the
it’s all good as long as you’re not sitting. his brother and mother. mother to stay in touch
after finally sitting
3. Keep the adrenaline flowing. Their mother cares for with the her husband
down after 24 hours. the boys full-time and and other son.
2 UNC-DM committees: an unforgettable experience
By Olivia Barrow marathon in a

E
ach September, hundreds of students apply to join bigger capacity
committees to help support the year-long fundrais- than as a dancer
ing effort of The UNC Dance Marathon. when he signed
With 38 sub-committees needing between four and 20 up for the Opera-
members each, these committees allow students to get tions committee
involved in almost any field of interest. last year.
Committees work from September through February “I joined be-
performing a variety of tasks, such as planning the year- cause I wanted to
round fundraisers, organizing entertainment for the give more back
marathon, recruiting dancers, publicizing the marathon to the children’s
TJ Scott dances onstage with the
within the community and coordinating events with N.C. hospital,” he said. “I Operations committe during the
Children’s Hospital. wanted to become a 2010 marathon.
Four students who served on committees in the past bigger part of what the
and plan to continue this year share their stories of the marathon really does
UNC-DM committee experience. to help.” “I joined because
In addition to put-
“This is a fundraiser that ting together the UNC- I wanted to give
DM Dodgeball Tourna-
more back to the
tremendously helps the ment, the Operations
committee handles all hospital. I wanted
families at N.C. Children’s the behind-the-scenes
work at the marathon. to become a bigger
Hospital who need it most.” “What we do through
the marathon proves
part of what the
Sarah McGuire, senior that as large group we Marathon really
can do anything we set
our minds to,” Scott does to help.”
Senior Sarah McGuire joined UNC-DM her first year, said. TJ Scott, junior
working on the Alumni Relations committee and dancing The Operations com-
in the marathon. mittee also oversees
Since then, she has served two years on the Entertain- the process of painting each of the nearly 600 banners
ment committee. that decorate Fetzer Gym and keep dancers motivated.
“Being on Alumni Relations my freshman year was “My favorite experience as a committee member was
great!” Sarah said. painting all the banners for the marathon,” Scott said.
“Its big project (the annual UNC-DM Homecoming Golf “I definitely wouldn’t trade the experience for any-
Classic) occurred in the fall, so we got busy right away.” thing else.”
Because Sarah has participated each of her college
years participating in UNC-DM, it has been a big part of
her college experience.
McGuire said her favorite experience so far as a com-
mittee member has been watching all of the dancers
enter the gym at the kickoff of the marathon.
“Music is jamming, moralers are acting crazy,” she
said.
“It’s cool to see everyone’s reaction as they are guid-
ed into their home for the next 24 hours.”
Junior TJ Scott was most excited to experience the

Sonya Rice (center) collects donations for N.C. Children’s

Hospital with friends at a UNC-CH football game in fall 2009.
UNC-DM committees continued … 3
Sonya Rice is a veteran of the Fundraising Projects Will Barbour found the UNC Dance Marathon during
committee. A junior this year, she has worked on Fund- Fall Fest his freshman year.
raising Projects since her first week at UNC-CH. “After dancing on Hooker Fields with all the other
“I was the most excited about volunteering at the wacky UNC-DM people, I
hospital with the kids and the experience of The UNC knew it was somewhere
Dance Marathon and reaching my own personal fund- I could contribute,” he
raising goal, as well as meeting some other people who said.
Barbour, a sophomore
history and religion ma-
“We aren’t just touching jor, joined the Morale
these families’ lives, but committee, through
which he helped recruit
the lives of each person dancers, moralers and
volunteers all year. He
who gets involved in The also served as a team
leader and entertainer
UNC Dance Marathon and during the marathon.
showing them how great it “Being a Morale mem-
ber meant spreading
is to make a difference in the word about UNC-DM
and getting people ex-
their community, inspiring cited for it in the most
ridiculous ways possi-
them to give back again.” Dressed in UNC gear, Will Barbour
cheers on dancers at the marathon. ble,” Barbour said with
Sonya Rice, junior a laugh.
“This involved dancing in the Pit, wearing grape
costumes and asking
are passionate about service,” Rice said. helpless first-years to “After dancing
As a major source of UNC-DM funds, the Fundraising sign up for UNC-DM as
Projects committee coordinates all canning efforts at they were walking into on Hooker Fields
UNC-CH sporting events and percentage nights at local Rams Head to enjoy a with all the other
businesses. peaceful meal.”
Fundraising Projects also manages donation boxes, For Barbour, the wacky UNC-DM
fundraising letters and the “One Card push,” in which most exciting part of
students are able to donate to UNC-DM through their the marathon was be- people, I knew it
University expense accounts. ing onstage and seeing was somewhere I
Two years of dancing and committee membership has 1,600 dancers taking a
impressed Rice with the realization of how much an or- stand for the patients could contribute.”
ganization can accomplish for families in need. and families at N.C. Will Barbour, sophomore
“We aren’t just touching these families’ lives, but Children’s Hospital.
the lives of each person who gets involved in The UNC He said the marathon caused him to see things in a
Dance Marathon and showing them how great it is to new perspective.
make a difference in their community, inspiring them to “It was challenging, but made me realize that dancing
give back again.” for 24 hours is so much better than being in a hospital
bed for that time,” he said.

Join The 2011 UNC Dance Mara-
thon as we continue to raise money
and support for N.C. Children’s Hos-
pital.
Whatever your interests and
strengths, there is a committee in
which you can help make a differ-
ence in the lives of the patients and
families at the hospital.
Committee Recruitment Week will
take place Monday, Sept. 6 through
Friday, Sept.10.
Applications will be available on-
line and in the Pit.
4 UNC-DM unveils 2011 theme
By Olivia Barrow
Continuing an exciting tradition
started last year, The UNC Dance
Marathon will hold its second annual
Theme Reveal party Friday, Sept.
17, at Players.
“This is our second theme re-
veal, and it was great last year be-
cause it made the theme more of
a big deal,” said Galen Gook, chair
of the Campus Fundraising com-
mittee.
Although UNC-DM has always in-
corporated a theme into its enter-
tainment and fundraising lineup, it
has not been well-publicized.
“In previous years, there was nev-
er any theme announcement,” Cook
said. “The theme was kind of hap-
hazardly used in the marathon and
events leading up to it.”
The Theme Reveal will begin as a
“White Out” party, just as it did a
year ago. Anyone interested in UNC-
DM is invited to the event and en-
couraged to wear all white.
Last year most of the attendees
were new committee members who
signed up the week before during
Committee Recruitment Week, but
this year Cook said she hopes to
draw a broader range of people as
the event includes a bar sing fea-
turing several campus a capella
groups.
The Loreleis, Achordants, Tar Heel
Voices, Psalm 100 and the Walk Ons
will begin singing at 9:30 p.m., with
the big reveal taking place at 11
p.m.
The cover charges are $3 for 21
and older and $5 for under 21. All
proceeds before midnight will go to-
ward the 2011 UNC-DM.

Let’s see how far we’ve come

By Olivia Barrow
In 1997, a student from Raleigh came to UNC-Chapel
Hill with the dream of starting a dance marathon.
Having witnessed the powerful impact of Pennsylva-
nia State University’s 48-hour dance marathon on the
dancers, spectators, patients and families involved
with it, Michael Bucy was inspired to fill UNC-CH’s void
for a large student-run fundraiser.
The first dance marathon at UNC-CH took place in
February 1999, with about 75 dancers raising $40,000
for N.C. Children’s Hospital. It was a small start, but
Bucy had a huge vision for the future.
“We said, ‘We’re not doing it for this year,’” Bucy
recalled. “‘We’re doing it for five years from here —
10 years from now — to build something: a tradition
on campus.”
Twelve years later, Bucy’s dream has grown into The
UNC Dance Marathon, which through the years has
raised more than $2.4 million for N.C. Children’s Hos-
pital and now involves about 2,000 students each year
and dozens of community businesses.
“We had all the mix here at Carolina,” Bucy said.
“You have an unbelievable student body that is dedi-
cated to causes. You have a good Greek system that
can support all this, a good network of student or-
ganizations. And finally, you had the N.C. Children’s
Hospital, which is an unbelievable hospital that serves
all of North Carolina and takes in all patients.”
With a mission “to unite the University, community
and state in fostering emotional and financial support
that improves the quality of life for the patients and
families of N.C. Children’s Hospital,” the UNC-DM has
stayed true to Bucy’s original vision, even through
enormous growth.
“My vision for UNC-DM was looking out 15 years at
the event that it would become,” Bucy said, “and
seeing the family hours, and seeing the kids there,
and seeing a full gym and spectators that were being
touched by it, and the community coming together for
the cause, and then students being motivated to con-
tinue doing more.”
As more of the community and campus have come
together for the cause, UNC-DM has expanded its sup-
port of the hospital to funding 10 grants, including the
original For the Kids fund established in 2000.
To keep the dancers going strong throughout their
24-hour stand, the marathon has brought in dozens
of student groups, local bands and celebrities. Some
noteworthy appearances include soccer Olympian Mia
Hamm in 2001, UNC men’s basketball coach Roy Wil-
liams in 2004 and a surprise visit from actor and come-
dian Will Ferrell in 2008.
In 2010 the organization introduced “Kid Co-Cap-
tains” as a way to get patients more involved in the
marathon, serving to remind to the dancers of why
they raised their money and are standing for 24 hours.
The co-captains are paired with a dancer team, wear-
ing their team’s shirt, dancing and participating in
team activities and cheering them on.
2011 Overall Coordinator Sarah Beth Wilkison said
her favorite moment from the 2010 marathon was
when Jack, a 5-year-old co-captain, stood onstage and
told all of the dancers to jump and to raise their hands
in the air. His mother spoke of Jack’s hospitalization
and how she hoped that one day her son would be
standing with the dancers.
“If your child gets ill, the last thing you should have
to worry about is the overwhelming financial burden,”
Bucy said. “You should be able to focus your time and
attention on caring for your child.”
Spotlight Grant: Parents’ Night Out
By Olivia Barrow
It’s easy to find the food on the
sixth floor of N.C. Children’s Hospital
on Tuesdays — just follow your nose.
Mouth-watering smells waft down
the hall as you follow signs to the
family dinner.
Turning the corner into the room,
warm smiles greet you as volunteers
offer you a hot, delicious, free meal.
The free dinner, known as Parents’
Night Out, is a partnership between
The UNC Dance Marathon and UNC
Health Care Volunteers.
Each Tuesday night, the catering
department at UNC Hospitals
prepares a meal including salad,
chicken, a vegetarian dish, a
vegetable, rolls and dessert.
The meal is then given to parents
and family members of patients at
the hospital.
UNC-DM pays for the meal and
provides servers for half of the year.
The volunteer association with the
help of a team of volunteers covers
the other six months and any school
breaks when UNC-DM servers are not
available.
“The fact that you don’t have
to think about food on Tuesdays is
always a good thing,” said Giridhar
Shamsunder, a parent of a patient
who has participated in Parents’
Night Out many times.
If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please contact 2011 Publicity Chair Rebecca Brenner at rbrenner@email.unc.edu.
5
who comes through the door, the
volunteers also prepare trays for the
parents in the Pediatric Intensive
Care Unit who cannot leave their
children. They also prepare trays for
the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit
support group.
“We’ve had families who have
said, ‘We haven’t eaten all week,’”
Bowles said. “We’ve had families
“You’re so focused on the patient, that have been here for six months,
when somebody comes and says and they’ll come in here and talk
there’s food here, you say, ‘Oh, ok ‘adult talk’ away from the kids and
we better eat today.’” just be an adult for a few minutes.”
It’s expensive to eat at UNC Bowles volunteers along with six
Hospitals, said Linda Bowles, director other women, some of whom have
of Volunteer Services. been involved with Parents’ Night
Parents often end Out since it started six years ago.
up eating off the They have developed a close bond
patients’ trays. A free through working together to help
hot meal on Tuesdays the patients and families at N.C.
helps allay the costs Children’s Hospital.
of spending time with “Serving dinner is what we do to
patients. get them in here, but I think the
The volunteers bigger purpose is to let them know
spread the word that there’s people who care,“
around the entire Bowles said.
hospital to make sure
all families know
about the meal.
Two of the regular
volunteers speak
Spanish, so they are able to reach
out to the Spanish-speaking families
at the hospital.
In addition to serving everyone
Next Issue:
Be sure to check out these
stories in our October issue:
Spotlight: N.C. Children’s Hospital
patient and family
Grant Profile: 3 divisional grants