Students Begin Fundraising For 2019 Ladue Dance Marathon

LADUE, MO — Students at Ladue Horton Watkins High School are beginning to raise money for the annual Ladue Dance Marathon, a fundraiser for Children's Miracle Network. Ladue is one of two high school dance marathons across Greater St. Louis.

During the 2015-16 school year, 3,000 people participated in dance marathons at Washington University, St. Louis University, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Western Illinois University, raising more than $470,000 for two local Children's Miracle Network hospitals — St. Louis Children's Hospital and Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital — according to the event's website.

The Ladue Dance Marathon is student-led and was the first high school dance marathon in the state, officials said.

"Each year, we put even more effort into the Ladue Dance Marathon than we did the year before," the organization's co-director, Hannah Suffian, said. "We do more than just raise money — we meet these children and their families and ensure these dollars go to work in order to make their lives just a little bit easier. It's all for the kids."

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Students who participate spend months fundraising before the big night, where they may dance for 24 hours straight. "These dancers must remain standing for the whole time in order to stand for the kids in hospitals who cannot," the event's website explains.

Several patient families, known as "Miracle Families," also attend the dance marathon to share their stories with the students.

To raise money, students may lead canning drives at local grocery stores, hold car washes, or coordinate business sponsorships as part of their fundraising effort.

"Last year, [Ladue] students raised a grand total of $81,143.05, the largest donation to date," officials said. "Over the past five years, the Ladue Dance Marathon has raised more than $207,000. All funds stay local, going directly to St. Louis Children’s Hospital and SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital to help pay for new patient programs, equipment and facility renovations."

The Ladue Dance Marathon will be held at Ladue Horton Watkins High School on February 2. Donations can be made anytime between now and then. For more information, or to donate, visit www.laduedm.com.

Photos courtesy of Ladue Dance Marathon