By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
For more than 30 years, Bowling Green State University students have been dancing, biking, collecting teddy bears and raising funds to support Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Toledo.
BGSU Dance Marathon is the name of the philanthropic organization, and it is the umbrella for so many activities, events and initiatives, with the dance marathon portion—now called ZiggyTHON— being the culmination.
The mission is unchanged from 1995 when the first event was held. The sole purpose is to raise funds to support the children and the families who depend on Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Toledo.
Dance Marathon is a completely student-run organization that culminates in ZiggyTHON, a 12-hour event that includes music, dancing, raffle baskets, vendors, free food and stories from the students who are involved and the families who benefit from the philanthropy.
An eight-person executive board and a 60-person steering board are the heart of the organization, said Teresa VanVraken, ZiggyTHON’s director of marketing.
This year’s ZiggyTHON is on March 28 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the Perry Field House on BGSU’s campus.
The fundraising goal for the event is $45,000, an increase over last year’s $40,000 that was raised.
VanVraken didn’t know the total amount raised over the years, but news accounts from 2019, stated BGSU’s Dance Marathon at that time had raised over $5 million since 1995.
Over the years, funds have helped families in need, renovated some of the spaces in the children’s hospital, “flown in a specialist for children’s health needs, added Xboxes to the hospital’s game room, and so much more,” she said.
“The success of the event depends on community engagement through donations and participation,” she said. “It also offers a valuable leadership experience for the students involved.”
One way the community can be involved is through in-kind donations of gift cards to local businesses or items that can be included in the raffle baskets that are used to raise additional funds.
Bikes for Tikes, another offshoot of the philanthropy, has been involved since 2000. This year, the bicyclists will ride 72 miles, representing the number of patients admitted to a Children’s Nationwide Hospital every minute.
On Feb. 6, the organization hosted the Teddybear Toss event at the BGSU Falcon hockey game. More than 900 stuffed animals were thrown onto the ice and collected to give to the hospital.
VanVraken, a junior special education major at BGSU, has been involved for three years, starting as a morale captain in her first year and family relations chair in her second year.
“I’ve actually had health issues my entire life, and I was a patient at Nationwide Children’s in Columbus,” she said, explaining her personal motivation for joining Dance Marathon. “I want to be a special education teacher, and this was just a really good way to get involved in the community and really give back to what they’ve given me.”
Individuals or businesses interested in supporting the effort with money or other in-kind donations may contact the organization by emailing ziggython@gmail.com.
