IU Dance Marathon

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to photograph Indiana University's Dance Marathon.

For those of you who have never heard of the program, universities all over the country raise money for their local Children's Miracle Network hospitals by soliciting donations and holding events throughout the year, and celebrating that fundraising with a Dance Marathon. IU's lasts for 36 hours, and dancers aren't allowed to sit down because they are trying to experience just some of the exhaustion that families of very sick children have to endure. The marathon is punctuated by stories from these families, most of whom come onstage to share. This is hands-down my favorite part, and unfortunately many of my photos are out of focus because the tears in my eyes made it impossible to adjust the lens!

The photo above is actually from the kids' talent show, where any child who is well enough to participate is allowed to demonstrate their talents. Some of the youngest children were overwhelmed when they got up onstage and faced about a thousand college students, but I was still amazed by how brave they were! The hospital families had a tent set up where they could eat and talk away from crowds, and IU students were constantly coming over to play with the kids. While sharing the story of his two developmentally disabled children, a father expressed how he has no worry when his kids are gone from the tent for an hour at a time, because he absolutely trusts every dancer at the marathon. It was wonderful to see young adults focused on something other than themselves.

The other parents' stories reinforced my belief that kids are just naturally more awesome : ) One father described his daughter's extremely painful chemotherapy, and how helpless he felt to be unable to help her. His second-grade daughter squeezed his fingers until they turned blue, despite her morphine drip. When a nurse came in to ask if the little girl would like to do a project, her dad nearly shouted at the woman that his daughter was in pain and obviously not in the mood to do crafts. But the little girl opened her eyes and asked what the activity was, then spent the next twenty minutes focused exclusively on decorating a purse. The dad really affected me when he noted, "She didn't learn that in nursing school." While adults simply suffer in silence or lash out at anyone who dismisses their pain, kids know - decorating a purse really can help to distract you!

Though I had originally driven to Indiana to cover a magazine article that fell through, I am glad that I was able to see the Dance Marathon that was so important in my older brother's life. It is just one of the many great ways to help out your community, so if you are an energetic, caring person, I'd suggest finding one in your city!