TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Suncoast Pasco News

Students 'Take A Stand' For Area Hospital

ADVERTISEMENT

By KLINT LOWRY | The Suncoast News

Published: February 14, 2009

NEW PORT RICHEY - With a name like "Dance Marathon," you would expect to enter the River Ridge High School gymnasium to find staggering couples with matching numbers pinned to their backs struggling to hold each other up.

Actually, dancing was just one small part - and an optional one at that - of the event members of the school's Future Business Leaders of America held last Saturday. They called their fundraiser event "Dance Marathon" as more of symbolic choice than a literal description.

"We're standing up for kids who can't," said Denise Russo, who along with fellow FBLA members Rahul Gandhi and Hailey Mackin organized the benefit to raise money for All Children's Hospital.

Every year, the FLBA organizes community service projects. Often, these projects take the form of informational presentations for their fellow students.

This year, rather than present something to the school, they decided to do a project that more directly involved the school and community. They wanted something active, something fun. With contributions from local businesses and participation from several school clubs, they put together an eight-hour marathon of fun. The marathon ran from 4 p.m. to midnight.

As they entered the gym, guests found the retractable bleachers pushed back, and the cavernous space circled with stations, like a sort of entertainment marketplace. The only thing guests couldn't find in the gym was a place to sit down, in keeping with the marathon, "standing up for those who can't" theme.

A DJ provided a musical backdrop, and the evening's entertainment included various themed dance segments, including a Latin dance lesson. Also, members of the school's Dance Crew were ready all night long to teach dozens of improv dance moves to anyone who asked.

Other school clubs had stations set up for a variety of activities. FBLA offered a photo booth at one station, and "Ultimate Twister" at another. They taped together 16 regular Twister mats with the hope of instigating a tangled mass of humanity.

The Christian Club provided a guaranteed hit with its Guitar Hero booth, as did the Spanish Honor Society with a Dance Dance Revolution station.

The German Honor Society gave guests the opportunity to be "idols" for a night with their karaoke booth, and the Art Honor Society offered to add a little star quality to anyone's image with face painting.

Guests paid a $10 admission, which entitled them to all the attractions and refreshments. The only station that cost anything above the admission fee was the Key Club's attraction.

The club set up a "jail" cell. Guests could have friends or family members "arrested," setting their "bail" at anywhere from 50 cents to $5. The jailbird could wait for someone to post bail, pay the fee themselves or ride out a 20-minute sentence in the clink to the amusement of passersby.

The accumulated bail money went toward the FBLA's goal of raising $2,000 for All Children's Hospital by March 28. Even the choice of the pediatric medical center in St. Petersburg as a beneficiary was made to emphasize the community spirit of the project.

"We wanted to something where we could see the effect," Russo said. Rather than give to a national organization, donating to All Children's Hospital will keep the money and the good that comes from it in the community. The approach seemed to resonate with their fellow students, Mackin added. They had nearly 100 advance ticket sales.

"We had awesome students who knew they couldn't make it, and they paid anyway," she said.

The school has a lot of students who have been helped by All Children's, Mackin added, herself included, which helped make the event more personal.

Klint Lowry can be reached at 727-815-1067 or klowry@suncoastnews.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT