Pitt greeks dance, raise $50,000

‘ ‘ Even on Sunday morning, the dancers, moralers and casual participants kept the party going… ‘ ‘ Even on Sunday morning, the dancers, moralers and casual participants kept the party going with 4-square, talking and, of course, dancing. ‘ ‘ The greek-sponsored Pitt Dance Marathon took place from 11 a.m. Saturday to 11 a.m. Sunday in the Fitzgerald Field House and raised a total of $51,249.19 this year for the Lung and Thoracic Malignancy Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. ‘ ‘ ‘ Some of the most enthusiastic dancing came as dancers strived to reach the final goal of staying standing until 11 a.m. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘My feet are killing me,’ said Pitt student and dancer Hans Glas.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Earlier in the marathon, Glas said he felt enthusiastic about the next 13 hours. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It’s amazing,’ he said. ‘If people aren’t here, they are absolutely, entirely wrong.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Glas and his group of moralers, people assigned to keep the dancer awake and having fun, spent the majority of the time dancing. ‘ ‘ ‘ One of Glas’ moralers, Pitt junior Cameron Giles, stayed with him through the whole night except for a four-hour nap.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ The hours between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. provided the greatest challenge, said Glas.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Everyone started to fall asleep while dancing,’ he said. ‘ ‘ ‘ At the beginning of the night, cancer survivor and Pitt alumnus Shannon Barry spoke to the crowd about his pride in the Pitt greeks. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘They’ve created an event that funds research that keeps our lives on track,’ said Barry. ‘ ‘ ‘ Pitt senior Elyssa Gerst said stories like Barry’s help to keep the dancers motivated through the night.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Gerst has participated in the marathon in some way every year since her freshman year when it began. During that time, she has never fallen asleep, and this year she didn’t worry about it, she said. ‘ ‘ ‘ Dinner lacked vegetarian options, said Gerst, but besides that she said that the event seemed better organized than in past years. ‘ ‘ ‘ All of the 200 official dancers, moralers and staff ate food donated from local restaurants such as Chipotle, Bruegger’s, Quizno’s, Qdoba and Vocelli. Hundreds of other attendees had to fend for themselves. ‘ ‘ ‘ Dancing when she liked the music, Gerst made it through to the end of the night with the help of games and extra activities. ‘ ‘ ‘ The marathon reached its peak after midnight during the techno dance.’ The students who showed up for this section of the marathon seemed to outnumber the dancers and formal participants.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘All the people dancing have just got here,’ said Gerst. ‘ ‘ ‘ With strobe lights flashing, the DJ played a combination of remixed pop songs and classic techno, and the staff handed out free glow sticks to the dancers.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ During the marathon, students could also participate in games and activities spaced out through the 24 hours. ‘ ‘ ‘ At about 1 p.m., students played cornhole with equipment donated from the Pitt Cornhole Club. ‘ ‘ ‘ At about 3 p.m., the Eat ‘n Park smiley cookie mascot showed up, and students decorated their own smiley cookies. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Students played water pong, ‘Guitar Hero’ and colored, as well. ‘ ‘ ‘ The event also featured a variety of musical acts and entertainers, including the Pitt drumline, DJ B-Tips, DJ Allbe, the Jungle and the Pitt dance team and cheerleaders. ‘ ‘ ‘ Some students, such as Laura Fedoronko and Kelly Coppler, showed up at the marathon just to see a certain group who stopped by the marathon to support the drumline. ‘ ‘ ‘ Coppler, who only stayed for the beginning of the marathon, said she liked the concept but felt that the greeks could do more with it. ‘ ‘ ‘ The event also lost one of its biggest celebrities, Steelers kicker Jeff Reed, because of the Super Bowl. ‘ ‘ ‘ In order to keep the event alcohol-free, overall captain Megan Mautz said the organizers posted security guards at the entrance and did not allow anyone to carry liquid into the building. ‘ ‘ ‘ Medics took one girl suffering from dehydration to the hospital early on in the event, said Mautz, but the girl was released and in good condition only a few hours later.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ In the last hour, many of the participants danced their hardest to finish up the marathon. ‘ ‘ ‘ Pitt freshman Amanda Klepes said she went through good and bad times, but she still managed to toss her arms out and jump around to the beat. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘It’s all mind over matter,’ said Klepes.