On Friday, Feb. 28, MTHS Mini-THON held their annual main event. This year’s Mini-THON was extra special, as it was the first overnight event since before the pandemic. It lasted from 6 p.m. on Friday to 6 a.m. on Saturday. Mini-THON directly supports the non-profit organization Four Diamonds. This organization supports families battling pediatric cancer. Over 280 students attended the event to celebrate this year’s fundraising total of $103,019.29 for the kids.
The theme was “Wave Goodbye to Cancer,” and the school was decorated with beach themed decorations. Members of Mini-THON had been preparing for the event all school year. This year’s overall heads were Kat Boomsma, Eyad Gomaa, Jocelyn Parise, Mya Ziegler and Caroline Zimmerman.
The event started with an hour to eat, enter for raffle baskets and play games. Thanks to the many local food sponsors, there were plenty of food and beverage options. At 7 p.m., they opened with an assembly in the arena about Mini-THON. There were also guest speakers who shared their stories and the amazing things Four Diamonds has done for their families. The heads also taught this year’s line dance, which was a tradition started at Penn State’s THON.
The night continued with various class wars, such as dodgeball, Hungry Hungry Hippos and three-legged races. There were inflatables and a gaga ball pit in the south gym. Hairdressers and barbers came to give haircuts to people interested in donating hair. There were also games of capture the flag, food eating competitions and lip syncing. Students who raised at least $300 on donor drive could enter the VIP room.
Even as the night progressed, they kept the energy up with the fun games and atmosphere. The total of $103,019.29 was announced. This includes all of the funds raised by Mini-THON events all year, including the pageant, snowball dance, and registration Mini-THON. The event finally wrapped up at 6 a.m. With the money raised, Four Diamonds will be able to provide 2,943.4 hours of music therapy, 686.8 hours of child life services, 515.1 days from a clinical nutritionist, 103 days from social workers, 95.4 hours of research and 22.9 months of funding for research equipment.
