$7,490,133.87 FOR THE KIDS!

This past weekend was the 46 hour no sleeping and no sitting dance marathon for pediatric cancer. Penn State's THON broke the record and raised almost $1 million more than last year. This is nothing short of amazing, impressive, and admirable. Anyone who was a part of THON, whether is was just donating, raising money, or actually a part of THON weekend in University Park, should be proud to have made a difference in this outstanding total.

I unfortunately did not have the privilege of being in the Bryce Jordan Center, but after canning and helping raise money the past two semesters, I wanted to stay connected to what was going on somehow. The THON website is great. Throughout the course of the weekend, people were able to go to a THON blogging site where the dancers posted what was going on from their perspective as it was happening. There was also a camera broadcasting THON live in the Bryce Jordan Center, which also provided pictures that were tagged as "taken 3 seconds ago... taken 6 seconds ago..." etc.

Penn State's football coach, Joe Paterno, came on stage and spoke to the dancers and moralers that were there this weekend. Whether you're a Joepa fan or not, he said some things that really expressed the energy in the Bryce Jordan Center during those 46 hours. He said, "I wish the whole world could see and feel what's in this room right now; love, commitment, and dedication. It just reeks from this room." Later, he also said, "In my 58 years at Penn State, I've never been more proud than right now. God bless every single one of you. And I hope you will remember what you can achieve later on in life, what you've achieved here for yourselves, the people you've helped, and how proud you've made everyone connected to Penn State. God bless every single on you." And of course, the end of his speech concluded with the famous "WE ARE...PENN STATE" chant.

The dancers, those who remained on their feet for the entire 46 hours, are absolutely amazing. Hopefully these individuals will inspire more people to become involved in some way, and next year's total will be even bigger... FTK!!