Iowa State Dance Marathon has been helping children with life threatening illnesses for 19 years, providing financial and emotional support to hundreds of families across Iowa. All of the money raised is given directly to University of Iowa Children’s Hospital through Children’s Miracle Network. Iowa State Dance Marathon is split into two twelve-hour events from 7 PM Friday to 7 AM Saturday and 11 AM to 11 PM on Saturday. At this event, the participants (dancers) choose to attend their specific event and then stand for 12 hours to symbolize support for the families who spend countless hours in hospital waiting rooms. Participants of the event play games with the kids and their families and even do a little bit of dancing!

This past Friday and Saturday, Iowa Gamma once again had a great presence at Dance Marathon 2016. During the event, many of the Phi Delta Theta committee members got little to no sleep over the course of 38 hours. Although tired, they were vital in the event’s success. Iowa State Dance Marathon 2016 raised over $362,000, with Iowa Gamma raising $9,006!

This year the chapter had seven active members on committees. The following were on committees: Tim Buescher – Families, Grant Denny – Recruitment, Parker Hinkle – Recruitment, Austin Javellana – Dancer Relations, Jackson Mores – Families, Nathan Pattee – Families, and Thomas Woodruff – Dancer Relations.

Dance Marathon holds a special place in the hearts of Iowa Gamma Phi Delts. The event, Iowa State’s largest and most successful student-run philanthropy event on campus, was started 19 years ago by an ISU Phi Delta Theta member. Since its inception, an Iowa Gamma Phi has been in the General Co-Director role for 10 of the 19 Dance Marathons. The chapter is excited to announce that Grant Denny, sophomore in Chemical Engineering, is continuing on Iowa Gamma’s legacy of leadership. Grant was recently named the 2017 General Co-Director for Dance Marathon!