Mini-THON raises over $14,000 for pediatric cancer
March 19, 2019
Baldwin students and staff announced over the weekend that they had raised $14,598.62 in the school’s first ever all-night fundraiser known as the Mini-THON.
Mini-THON is the high school version of Penn State’s THON fundraiser. Students raise money all year long for pediatric cancer research and treatment, then participate in all-night activities to wrap up the fundraising campaign.
“It went very well. There were a lot of kids and a lot of excitement. Everyone did a great job at pushing through the night,” English teacher Rachael Murrman said.
The event started Friday night with the school talent show, which was open to the public, and then continued with a dance featuring DJ Steve Maffei until midnight. The rest of the night included basketball and speedball tournaments, games like ping pong and cornhole, video games, board games, pizza dinner and snacks, and several rounds of Kahoot.
“I thought that it was a fun idea to combine the talent show with the Mini-THON. Our school is filled with talent and it not only gives a chance for students to express themselves, but it was cool that the proceeds went to something that will help so many people,” sophomore Gianna Giorgianni said.
Students and faculty originally hoped to raise $5,000 throughout the year, but quickly surpassed that total.
“The fact that so many students were able to work together to raise almost $15,000 is incredible,” Murrman said.
According to Murrman, the Mini-THON will become an annual event and planning for next year’s event will begin in a few weeks.
Senior Addie Tagg said she thinks the event will continue to be successful.
“I think it will become more and more popular. It was an overall fun experience and it has had such a positive impact on our school district and childhood cancer research,” Tagg said.
The student organizers put in a lot of work throughout the year, but it all paid off, she said.
“It makes me happy that we were able to come together as a school and a district to support such a beneficial cause,” Tagg said. “It also feels rewarding with how much work we put in to prepare an extremely successful event.”
