BOWLING GREEN, OH (WTOL) - The 22nd annual Dance Marathon was held this weekend at Bowling Green State University. Students were up for 24 hours to raise money for Mercy Children Miracle Network. The Ziggython began Saturday at 6 P.M. and ended at 6 Sunday evening.
The event raised over $360,000 for the kids.
The miracle children and their families took part in the Dance Marathon as well. Brandt Beaverson is a miracle kid who has been coming to Dance Marathon for five years.
"Brandt was born with a birth defect called unperformed anus. It happens to one in 500 live births and there's really no way of detecting it," said Brandt's mother Marcy.
Brandt has gone through three surgeries, but his mother said he looks forward to this event every year.
"He has a blast. I think this might beat out Christmas in terms of what kids look forward to. It's a whole weekend of playing with kids who give him attention."
BGSU students spend months raising money to help these local children. Fifth year senior Kendra Crabtree has eagerly participated all five years.
Kendra's cousin has Autism which is why she decided to join Dance Marathon in the first place.
She also said she looks forward to it every year, and signs up as soon as she can to start her donor drive to hopefully reach her goal.
Last year she wanted to raise $500, which she did.
This year she was determined to double that by raising $1,000.
Kendra say's it's a lot of work but, "If you come for even a minute you'll see the smiles on [the kids'] faces. You can't really have another event that makes the impact this one does."
You can still donate by going to visiting here.
