Student Org Spotlight: DemonTHON

Since my freshman year, I have been a member of DemonTHON and it has ended up being one of the best parts of my college experience. DemonTHON is a student-run fundraising organization on campus that raises money for Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. We are a member of the Children’s Miracle Network of dance marathon organizations which all raise money for children’s hospitals around the country. Our mission statement is as follows: DemonTHON is an organization that aspires to create a world in which all kids can be kids. We are a community of college students dedicated to making miracles possible for critically ill children and their families. Through compassion, hope, and action, we are committed to inspiring our generation to fight for the next. 

Jeff and the other members of DemonTHON pose inside Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago in front of their logo.

DemonTHON is very active on campus, and we hold multiple events each month to both raise funds and recruit participants. We typically try to align our events with the holidays or seasons, or anything happening on campus. Aside from our smaller monthly events, we have two main events that happen during the year: Miracles ‘til Midnight in the Winter, and our big Dance Marathon event in the Spring. Our Miracles ‘til Midnight event is usually around 6 to 8 hours long and we hold it in the Student Center. It’s all about raising as much money as we can before midnight, and anyone can come and join us as we play games, hold competitions, and learn about why we fundraise! Our end of the year dance marathon event is a 10 hour celebration of all the work we have done throughout the year, and don’t worry, you don’t have to dance for all 10 hours! We have a few of our miracle kids from Lurie Children’s Hospital come and visit with their families, and we get to celebrate with them, play their favorite games, eat their favorite snacks, and it’s really an awesome time. In between all of the games and fun we take dance breaks led by our Morale Captains and it is such a cool experience to dance with everyone for a great cause.

The participants of the DemonTHON Dance Marathon pose for a photo and Jeff is hidden in the back holding up part of a group sign displaying the $96,673.92 total that DemonTHON raised.

Aside from all of the amazing fundraising and experiences we provide for the kids at Lurie Children’s Hospital, this organization also provides a great sense of community and connection for its members. Whether you are simply a participant raising money, or you are on the executive board helping to plan our main events, the students in this group are all driven and passionate and are some of the best people I have met at DePaul. Alongside the amazing people, the organization is run like a business and you can learn some very useful and marketable skills while being a part of it. I am on the executive board this year, and I really appreciate how well the leaders of DemonTHON divide responsibility to make sure that everyone can be useful and have a meaningful impact on what we do. I cannot recommend joining this organization enough, regardless of what you are looking for. The cause is incredibly meaningful, the people are passionate and fun to be around, and the experience is one of my favorite parts of being at DePaul. To learn more, you can check out our Instagram @demonthon or go to our website, demonthon.org.

~ Jeff

Learn how to apply to DePaul!