Posts filed under ‘THON’
Another THON, Another Record
Kelly Tunney of The Daily Collegian took the student newspaper’s cover photo.
I can’t imagine that by Monday evening, there’s not a Penn Stater on the planet who doesn’t know the news: THON set another fundraising record: $12.3 million dollars.
That’s more than $2 million more than last year’s amount, which shattered the previous record. This year’s total ($12,374,034.46, to be precise) raised the total amount that THON has raised for the Four Diamonds Fund to more than $100 million since 1973. No wonder Penn Staters, who have been saddened by so much of what’s happened over the past 14 months, were jubilant when the total was announced.
But we figured that you might not yet have caught up on the terrific THON coverage, starting with the cover of The Daily Collegian, which you can see here. If you want to get a feel for what it was like to be there, through words and pictures, you’re going to want to check out the following:
Click here to read the main story in the Collegian and for a chart with THON milestones over the years, and go to the Collegian’s home page for links to more stories and more photos. If you want a PDF of the paper, you can click here.
If you want to relive THON as it happened, click here for Onward State’s live blog. (Of course, you’ll have to scroll to the bottom and scroll up should you want to go through the whole 46 hours in chronological order.) There are links to videos, photos, and blog posts here, as well.
The College of Communications goes all-out on THON, too. (Someday I’m going to count the number of student journalists covering THON. But I digress.) You can click here to see how 15 student photojournalists, working in shifts, covered the whole 46 hours, and you’ll also find links to daily coverage, too.
And if all of this makes you want to relieve the highlights from 40 years of THON, check out this history piece, which appeared in the February issue of AlumnInsider, a monthly publication of the Alumni Association.
Let us know about your favorite THON coverage in the comments.
Lori Shontz, senior editor
Why We Dance: The Story of THON
A documentary screening doesn’t sound like the first thing a college student would do at 10 p.m. on a Friday. So when I saw a plethora of THON student volunteers pour into the State Theatre on Friday night––many sporting dresses, high heels, ties, and slacks, no less––you could say I was surprised.
Students at the Bryce Jordan Center make the trademark diamond symbol during THON weekend — an image captured in the documentary that will debut this Thursday.
But the featured documentary,Why We Dance: The Story of THON, helps to explain what 15,000 Penn State students devote themselves to every year––the largest student-run philanthropy in the world, Penn State’s Interfraternity / Panhellenic Dance Marathon (otherwise known as THON). That’s a reason to dress up.
Why We Dance chronicles the year-round efforts put toward Four Diamonds families and the 46-hour dance marathon, which, since 1977, has raised about $88 million dollars for pediatric cancer.
THON is a culture of its own. If you walk down College Avenue and see dozens of people sporting Penn State shirts and sweatpants, you’ll see that many people wearing THON gear, too. I recently noticed that almost 200 of my Facebook friends posted the THON 2013 promo video, especially when THON “captains” were selected. The energy of these students involved is palpable; Kevin O’Connor, a Rules and Regulations captain sitting next to me in the State Theatre on Friday night, agreed with a laugh that THON volunteers are “a different breed” of people––it’s like they’re perpetually over-caffeinated and just excited about life.
Right before the film began, I heard a student volunteer blurt out that (more…)
Get Ready for a THON Documentary
Let’s face it—THON is so big that it’s impossible, probably even in four years of college, to fully grasp the scope of it. Most Penn Staters know the basics: It’s the largest student-run philanthropy in the world, it’s raised $88 million since 1978, about 15,000 students volunteer to help with it every year. And, of course, the dancers stay on their feet for 46 hours.
A new documentary by Penn State Public Broadcasting broadens the picture. Check out the trailer above.
Called Why We Dance: The Story of THON, the documentary takes viewers far from the dance floor. It visits the homes of some THON families, follows some independent dancers as they try to win one of the lottery spots (for students not affiliated with a fraternity, sorority, or other group), and goes canning with the Penn State Croquet Club. Behind-the-scenes glimpses include the creation of the line dance, the overall committee calculating the 2012 total, and a small party in Hershey for the children too sick to attend THON in person.
Of course, by the end, there isn’t a dry eye in the Bryce Jordan Center. I bet there won’t be in theatres and living rooms, either.
WPSU began work on the project in 2010; among the funders is the Alumni Association. The documentary premieres at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, online and on WPSU television, and some other public television stations around the state. You can read more about the documentary in this news release at Penn State Live and at its official website.
And if you’re so inspired, we’d like to hear your best THON memories for an upcoming feature in the magazine. In 250 words or less, tell us your THON story, and email it to pennstaterletters@psu.edu. Our deadline is Oct. 10.
Lori Shontz, senior editor
THON Tops $10 million
Photo by Annemarie Mountz '84
Another year, another record.
This year’s THON raised $10,686,924.83 for the Four Diamonds Fund, topping last year’s record and breaking the $10 million mark for the first time.
Encouraging dancers in the final hours: Jay Paterno ’91, who took to the podium on Sunday afternoon.
“If you live to be 100 years old, what you’ve done here for the last two days, weeks, months…what you’ve done here will echo in eternity,” Paterno told the crowd. “When you want to know what Penn State is, and when you want to know what ‘We Are’ means, come to THON.”
For Penn State Live’s photos of THON weekend, click here. Or check out Onward State’s minute-by-minute coverage, with lots of videos and photos from THON, here. And in case you haven’t seen it already, here is the front page of today’s Daily Collegian.
Mary Murphy, associate editor
Getting Pumped for THON
The calm before the storm: The BJC on Thursday afternoon, just before THON preparations begin. Photo from Onward State.
At 6 p.m. today, THON 2012 officially begins in the Bryce Jordan Center, and the students involved don’t seem to need much help getting pumped (search #THON12 on Twitter for proof.)
But after a few dozen hours on their feet, this fun video from the LA Chapter’s Lights. Camera. Cure. might help pep up the crowd when they need it most. We told you about the Hollywood Dance-a-THON a couple of weeks ago—and how it raised over $37,000 for the Four Diamonds Fund. The video from the event, with a few celebrity cameos, will be shown on the big screen at the BJC this weekend.
Follow along with THON 2012 on Twitter: @THONwardstate, @TDC_THON, #THON12
Or check out The Daily Collegian‘s THON blog here or StateCollege.com’s coverage here.
Mary Murphy, associate editor
Hooray for Hollywood
The Alumni Association's Tom Hammond '00 snapped this pic when the grand total was revealed.
Less than three weeks before THON 2012 kicks off at the Bryce Jordan Center, the LA chapter of the Alumni Association hosted an abbreviated version of the dance marathon yesterday in Hollywood. Held at the historic Avalon Theater, “Lights. Camera. Cure.” was a six-hour dance party to support the Four Diamonds Fund for pediatric cancer. The event raised a total of $37,411.40.
And because no Hollywood party would be complete without a celebrity sighting, Rosey Grier ’56 stopped by—and posed for photos on the pre-show red carpet.
Mary Murphy, associate editor
Another Unbelievable Day
I took this photo at 3 p.m. today. It’s a bunch of Penn State students gathered on the Old Main lawn to mark 100 days until the 2012 edition of THON, the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. These kids and their countless hours of dedication represent much of what remains great about the University.
It’ll be a monumental challenge in the coming months to remind the world that Penn State is more than what has come out over the past five days.
The latest news—and it remains strange to type—is that in addition to the pending departure of Joe Paterno, who has announced his retirement effective at season’s end, multiple outlets are reporting University president Graham Spanier will soon step down as well. What will tomorrow bring? Not a clue.
Ryan Jones, senior editor
A Very Penn State Wedding
The bride and bridesmaids on the Old Main porch. Click to see a larger, crisper version.
We’ve written about Penn State weddings before—here, here, and here, for example—but this past weekend was the first time I was actually involved in one.
I had a bit part, really. My brother Chris was the wedding photographer, and I served more or less as assistant photographer—as well as second assistant equipment schlepper.
(Chris’ wife, Paula, was first assistant equipment schlepper; she’s been doing weddings with him for years.)
My brother has all the talent, the experience, and the gear. My role was to fill in the gaps by taking whatever candid shots seemed to present themselves.
It was a Penn State wedding through and through: Both the bride and groom—Cameron Klementik ’07 and Daniel Ertley ’07—are Penn Staters, as are the bride’s parents, Judge David Klementik ’70 and Ruth Whalley Klementik ’70, and so were many of the bridesmaids and groomsmen.
Over the course of about 12 hours, Chris shot photos at a host of campus spots: the Nittany Lion Inn, the alumni center, Old Main, the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center (where the ceremony was held), the Nittany Lion Shrine, and Beaver Stadium (where the reception was held, in the Mount Nittany Club). We were also scheduled to do shoots at the Obelisk, the Joe Paterno statue outside the stadium, and other spots, but it was rainy and we just plain ran out of time.
If that’s not Penn Statey enough for you, (more…)
THON: ‘Best All-Night Dance Party,’ Says Pittsburgh Magazine
Back when I covered Penn State sports for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, I routinely heard from readers who thought we were devoting too much space to the Nittany Lions. I always explained how many Penn State alumni live in Allegheny County, and I added that in any case, given that Penn State was only three hours away, it deserved coverage anyhow. Sometimes, the readers came around to my way of thinking.
I can’t imagine that anyone in my hometown is complaining about this, though. In its annual Best of the ’Burgh issue, Pittsburgh Magazine looks two and a half hours east (thank you, Route 22 upgrades) to name its “Best All-Night Dance Party.” That’s right, THON.
You have to scroll down here to see the full entry, which starts, “Strangely fitting that of all the ’70s dance parties, only THON survived,” and ends with this: “Only students may dance, though anyone is eligible to donate. No velvet ropes here.”
Lori Shontz, senior editor
Thoughts on My First THON
Photo by Annemarie Mountz '84
If an alien from another planet visited Penn State this weekend, earthlings sure would’ve had a hard time explaining THON.
Yesterday, I was that alien.
As the Penn Stater’s newest staff member and a State College resident for about two months, I had only a vague idea what this THON thing was all about. My co-workers cautioned that I’d have to see it to believe it, and my questions about what to expect were often answered with a pause, then a “You just have to go.” So I did.
I arrived at the Jordan Center at about 10 a.m. Sunday. With press pass in hand, I was ready to experience THON for the first time. As a friendly student escort led me through the labyrinth of hallways to the dance floor, I was given one precaution: (more…)
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