People dance during the rebelTHON fundraiser event for Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital last year.
Thomas Graning I The Daily Mississippian
Students, faculty and citizens of Oxford take a pledge to stay on their feet for 12 hours and dance for those who can’t at RebelTHON, a dance marathon that benefits Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.
After raising more than $25,000 last year, the board of RebelTHON is discussing new fundraisers and goals.
Wil Yerger, one of the executive co-directors for RebelTHON at Ole Miss, is excited for what’s to come.
“We have one month from Jan. 22 to Feb. 22 to finish getting people registered, raising money, everything before the event, and so we’ll be doing a lot of promotional stuff like tables in front of the Union and tents in front of the Union,” Yerger said. “We may have another Spirit Week, maybe two, who really knows. But we’re going to be getting people pumped up the month we get back.”
RebelTHON may come around only once a year, but “fundraising is a year-long thing,” according to Reagan Huey, the director of finance for RebelTHON.
Spirit Week is one of the new fundraisers RebelTHON hosts to get people pumped up for the event in advance.
“We have different events like a raffle, a bake sale, and the most fun part we did was a flash mob in the Union,” Huey said.
The money raised by the event goes toward fundraising efforts supporting Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.
While Yerger would not say what amount was being targeted for this year, he emphasized that the event is “more about doing the best good that we can for the kids.”
RebelTHON organizers are hoping to get people involved early on, Huey said. Although RebelTHON takes place on Feb. 22, the RebelTHON board members are already hard at work encouraging people to register and to get involved in the cause.
Ashley Maiolatesi, directer of dancer relations for RebelTHON, said that there is a new time frame for the event this year.
“RebelTHON will be from noon to midnight, 12 p.m. to 12 a.m,” Maiolatesi said. “The time is more convenient, and this way we are able to have more activities during the event. We can’t wait to show everyone how hard we’ve worked.”
Patients and families of Le Bonheur will again attend RebelTHON.
“There is a local family that attends many of our meetings and fundraisers,” Maiolatesi said. “Their son had heart surgery over the summer and his quality of life is so much better than previously. Our funds helped him and other children just like him.”
Those interested can register online at helpmakemiracles.org.
