The Feeling that is THON...

“I think that it's easy to label THON as an "indescribable" experience, because I think you go through such a range of emotions throughout the entire weekend, and it is hard to capture the environment and the whole event in a way that does it any justice. But I think if you try to really identify the emotions and feelings at different points throughout the weekend, it's a mixture of the following: "nervousness", "excitement", "pride", "perseverance", "sadness", "unity" and "hope" with emphasis on the happy emotions” ~Liz Willis Founder and Dancer for Tri-state

My story with cancer began in 2008 when my brother was diagnosed at the Penn State Children's Hospital. Very quickly my family was introduced to the Four Diamonds Fund, an organization who have been able to pay for all medical expenses not covered by insurances for all of their qualifying children. Of course at 15 years old, this didn’t have much of an effect on me other than the fact that my life was able to continue as normal. Looking back at it now, though, that probably was the greatest effect it could have had. In 2009 we went to our first THON, a 46 hour dance marathon to raise money for the four diamonds fund. It was phenomenal. We were “adopted” by Tri-State THON. A group of college students, much like the other groups of college students at THON, but better. After a few of them had taken part in different roles at THON they decided to start their own organization. That was how we got connected with them. Nina was one of the founders and also the family relations for the group. When I asked her about it she said “Volunteering in THON was life-changing. Even though we (the small group of us who started Tri-STATE) had all been involved in THON in other ways before, when we started Tri-STATE we had no idea how meaningful it would be to connect with the Graybill family and see firsthand the impact the Four Diamonds fund has in people's lives. It was overwhelming, honestly! The THON leadership was so helpful to us when we were going through the process to start a THON group, which also involved getting recognized as a student group by the university. That first THON weekend as Tri-STATE was so incredible to all be together as a group and connect with THON as a whole, all while spending so much time with you guys. Tri-STATE is one of the things in my life that I'm most proud to have been a part of!” All of them found a way to connect with each of us and have been family ever since.

All of THON is run by students. 16 committees handle everything from finances, to operation, to tech and so on. Emma Gregory was on the Moral Committee in 2012, we became close with her when she was assigned to my brother as a pen pal. She says “THON weekend is a blur, one minute you're crying from an inspiring act on state, the next minute you're laughing with a kid who literally feels like they're at a place more magical than Disney, the next you're about to collapse from fatigue but you have to get it together because a dancer needs you, the next you're panicking because your timeline on your clipboard says you were supposed to teach families the Line Dance but you totally forgot, then you're in front of 15,000 people leading them through a line dance, in awe of the picture of unity, of everyone putting their diamonds up as a symbol of their dedication to celebrate life in the face of cancer, it's truly other worldly, being there, it's a different dimension where love reigns. The spirit of that weekend is something that I try to carry into my life every day.”  Because of THON, College kids who are not sure who they may be are working together to make one dream come true. Greek organizations that we stereotype as being nothing more than party houses are raising millions of dollars for cancer research. They work all year sending out letters and fundraising. It’s amazing how each student who helps put THON together has a different view of it but all feel the same thing. “Being involved with THON, and especially being part of the team that started Tri-STATE, is one of my proudest achievements. When college students come together for a common good and to offer support to THON families, it creates an undeniable bond. Over a decade after I originally became involved with THON, some of my closest friendships remain with those I met by fundraising and dancing in THON. I feel such pride every year in seeing current Penn State students come together to create such an atmosphere of energy, excitement, joy and support. THON makes me proud to be a Penn Stater! ~ Kat Duke

 Those students who volunteer and are chosen, train for this 46 hour marathon of standing, moving, and staying awake. They work extra hard raising money. About a month before THON, the dancers start preparing. They have to go on a strict diet and give up things like caffeine and alcohol. Exercising, Hydration, and rest are also important in the weeks before THON. Emily Franklin, one of our dancers in 2010, said, “Dancing in THON was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The opportunity to do so is not easy to come by, so it really felt like I anticipated the moment we stood for years of my life. Nothing I ever could have imagined would have prepared me for the emotions you feel on the floor. Any time I felt tired, or sore (my ankles swelled to three times their normal size), or like I couldn’t do the line dance one more time, all I had to do was look at a Four Diamonds Family member, and know that absolutely anything is possible… even beating cancer forever; It is truly surreal how powerful you feel when in the presence of children and families who are in the fight of their lives, battling the evil that is cancer.” Whether on the floor or in the stands you are a support and inspiration for the next person.

Every year the stands fill up even more as groups get bigger and more students get involved. Some students come in for a few hours between the activities of their daily lives. Others try to stay for the whole event only slipping off to sleep for a few hours. I call these crowd warriors and I believe that they have the biggest impact on the dancers and the families. My friend Jake was a crowd warrior. He stood in the stands cheering on the dancers most of THON 2014. He said, “It's almost impossible to describe. The moment the dancers stand you just feel a huge adrenaline rush unlike anything you have ever felt. And standing there watching the dancers fight off fatigue makes you want to fight for your own pride. The last 4 hours is the best though because no matter how tired you are, you always get hyped for those moments.”

That first dose of THON was overwhelming. I still hadn’t realized how long of a journey we were on. A part of me was still thinking that as quickly as cancer had become a part of our lives, it would quickly be over, too. That wasn’t the case. It wasn’t until 2011 that A.) I realized that this was reality, and B.) I became obsessed with THON. That was the year that I had to do a photo project for school and I wanted to be able to use that project to show everybody what THON really was. Pictures will never do it justice. It’s a sea of people; it’s a sea of color. THON is a feeling. It’s an emotion. It is movement. I know, for someone who has been there almost every year since 2009, it’s easy to say. Now I’ve been there seven years. More then most of the students. Each time I go it’s an adrenaline rush. Every time it ends I want to go back. It doesn’t matter how little sleep I get so long as I am in that place with all the inspiring people. Now it is 2017, this was my last year at THON, and I am trying again to show everyone what THON is like.

I know cancer is not rare. Almost everybody knows somebody who is affected by cancer. At THON we dance to beat cancer. We dance for a cure. Think about a day where cancer is not a terminal illness. Think about a world where we don’t fear the phrase “It’s cancer”. Now take that feeling, that excitement, that hope and place yourself in the middle of hundreds of people who feel the same way. Then add kids. Six year olds who are stronger then you or I will ever be. Imagine being in their place. The pain, the uncertainty, the fear. But at THON all that goes away. For 46 hours these warriors can be children again. Think about the joy that comes over them. It’s not hard. This year at THON I met an incredible women who came to THON for the first time because her sister works at Penn State.

Being able to listen to her story and share mine, I could tell that she was feeling what I feel. You can’t just look at THON. You have to place yourself into it. You have to experience it, but you dont have to be there to do that. Read about it. Watch the live webcast every February. Look for the little donation boxes that will pop up each year. When you hear about Penn State THON, remember that we are all fighting for a world without cancer. And until that dream comes true we will continue to remember the little victories as well as the battles lost. We will continue to dance For The Kids.