By Claudia Loucks
Geneseo Current
Members of the Dance Marathon Logistics & Events Committee at Geneseo High School, and the group is in charge of structuring the upcoming Feb. 28 Dance Marathon at GHS, conducting the Dance Marathon meetings and planning fundraisers. The students are, in back from left, Bella Brown, Eleanor Bertelsen, and Dominic Ritter, all juniors at GHS; in front, Liberty Brumbaugh, a senior at GHS; and Kailee Von Motz, sophomore. Contributed Photo
Dance Marathon was introduced to the Geneseo community in 2022, and since that first year the local young people involved have raised over $100,000.
The 2026 Dance Marathon will be from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at Geneseo High School.
The event is open to high school students who each have raised $25, which will be donated to the St. Ambrose Dance Marathon, and those funds are then funneled into the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
There is still time for people in the Geneseo community to make a donation to the Dance Marathon, and if they know a high school student that is ‘dancing,’ they can donate to their personal donor drive, or a general donation can be made to the donor drive, by visiting this site: https://events.dancemarathon.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.event&eventID=6580.
At the University of Iowa and St. Ambrose University, Dance Marathon is a year-long organization providing support to families receiving treatment at Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
Mandy Kelly and her husband, Ryan, were instrumental in introducing Dance Marathon in Geneseo. They continue helping as advisors of the event at GHS, along with high school teacher Sara Bertelsen.
By holding the Mini Dance Marathon at GHS, the high school students are helping the colleges raise money.
The GHS students are in charge of marketing the Dance Marathon and businesses and community members can help support the effort by donating to an individual, the dance captains, or by supporting the group as a whole.
Selected dance captains work to create an event for dancers and local families. All members individually raise money through the Donor Drive and that money, along with contributions from the community, is used to hold the Mini Dance Marathon in an effort to raise a grand total which is donated to the Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
During the actual Dance Marathon at the high school, students dance, eat, play games, and listen to local families share their personal stories.
The stories are from families who share the medical journey of one family member and the impact the Stead Family Children’s Hospital has had on that journey.
Students begin raising money in December and continue through the Feb. 28 dance event at the high school.
This year, the GHS Dance Marathon raised funds through food-share nights (Culver’s), mini-golf fundraiser, pass-the-bucket, donations from local businesses, food vendor at football game (Holey Donuts), and donations from students, families and friends.
While working to raise money, the students involved are not aware of the grand total and the large donation is revealed at the event on Feb. 28. The students get to see their impact through the family stories and through the final donation number. Over the last four years, GHS Dance Marathon has raised over $100,000 for the hospital.
COMMENTS FROM SOME GHS DANCE MARATHON CAPTAINS:
-Kailee Von Motz – “I participate in Dance Marathon because when my cousin was diagnosed with cancer, I saw how scary and overwhelming that was, not just for them, but for our whole family. Going through that experience showed me how important it is to support kids and families facing serious illnesses. Bring part of Dance Marathon lets me help others who are going through similar situations.”
-Eleanor Bertelsen – “I joined Dance Marathon because of the profound impact it has had on our community. It is to rewarding to meet and hear the stories of families around us that Dance Marathon has personally helped. Being able to provide any type of support or relief in such stressful times gives me a sense of purpose and gratitude to be able to participate in something so much larger than myself. Also knowing that high schoolers and college-age students around the country and world are working for this same cause gives me hope and pride.”
-Liberty Brumbaugh – “I am a Dance Marathon Captain because I want to be part of something bigger than myself. At the event I love seeing the joy on the kids’ faces as we get to celebrate them and the journey that they have gone through. I’m so grateful I get to part of this group and that we are working towards helping in the lives of others.