LEWISTOWN - Though Lewistown Hospital's Dance Your Heart Out marathon isn't until February, registered teams have already begun raising money for the event, said Keria Meals, communication coordinator for Lewistown Hospital.
"So far, 12 teams have registered and one of the teams has already submitted $500," Meals said. "To date, we also have three sponsorships which have donated $1,800. That puts us at $2,300 raised."
All team fundraising and proceeds earned at the dance go toward the Congestive Heart Failure program at Lewistown Hospital, said Julie Maidens, nurse navigator for the CHF department and a member of the event planning committee.
Article Photos
Photo submitted by KERIA MEALS
From left, Taylor Stine, Cecilia Fitzgerald and Anna Hershey roll cake balls to raise money for their team for the ‘Dance Your Heart Out’ dance marathon.
"With the help of the community, we are hoping to raise $15,000 through the dance marathon," Maidens said. "The money will go toward educational materials and necessary resources for people living with heart failure."
A team led by Cecilia Fitzgerald and Anna Hershey, ninth graders at Juniata High School, are raising money by selling homemade cake pops to family members, friends and local businesses. At 50 cents each, the team has raised about $300 so far, Cecilia said.
"We thought cake pops would be a good idea because they are easy to make and even easier to sell," Cecilia said. "Sometimes our team gets together and rolls more than 500 cake balls at a time."
The girls and their team members registered for the dance marathon to support a cause not often heard about, Anna said. Any event designed to help people is important and the community should get involved, she added.
The idea behind 24 hours of dancing relates to those who have the chronic condition of CHF and never get a break from the symptoms, Maidens said.
"During the event we'll have a one-hour swing dance lesson given by Kevin Fee of Dance Harmony, a Zumba hour by TAZ (Fitness) and a dance-off," Maidens said. "There will also be free meals donated by Downtown OIP, Locust Grove Retirement Community, Subway, Rich Coast Coffee and Healthsouth Nittany Valley Rehab."
Regulations and printable registration forms can be found online at www.lewistownhospital.org under the Special Events section of the Support Your Hospital tab.
Teams should mail all completed forms and fundraising minimums to The Friends of Lewistown Hospital, Community Relations Department, 400 Highland Ave., Lewistown, PA 17044. Team registration will be accepted up to the event date.
For more information, contact Julie Maidens at 242-7486 or Phyllis Mitchell at 242-7365.
