STORRS, Conn. (WTNH) — HuskyTHON, UConn’s 18-hour dance marathon that raises money for Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, finished Sunday afternoon after kicking off Saturday night.
“Some of the kids come and they interact with all of us. They dance and play and they have so much fun,” said Torie Taylor, Vice President of External Relations for HuskyTHON and a senior at UConn. “It’s a really awesome experience.”
HuskyTHON is a year-long fundraising effort at the school, which has become the largest student-run philanthropy in the state.
Students join teams and spend all year fundraising FTK (For The Kids) through different events. Students can either be a dancer, a morale captain, or a volunteer for the big night.
“It’s draining, but knowing what is going to happen in the end – we’re going to raise so much money for so many kids and so many families – that is really what gets you going through the whole thing,” said Ryan Profetto, a morale captain and senior at UConn.
News 8’s Ryan Kristafer was also at UConn to help kick-off the event at 6 p.m. Saturday.
RISE AND SHINE!!! It’s a beautiful day to be FTK! See you in the field house to make miracles happen! #FTK pic.twitter.com/QMOYZqU0Nz
— UConn HuskyTHON (@HuskyTHON) February 20, 2016
In 2015, dancers helped raise $560,104 for CT Children’s Medical Center.
When the 18 hours was up on Sunday, it was revealed how much was raised for this year’s HuskyTHON. Students raised a record $716,394.58.
