SU’s virtual OttoTHON raises over $120,000 for Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital
SU's OttoTHON goes virtual
Despite the pandemic, Syracuse University’s OttoTHON maintained its commitment to Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital by raising over $120,000 during a virtual dance marathon on Feb. 28.
Like other events on campus, OttoTHON was conducted via Zoom, including new, creative activities to keep participants active during the day and replicate the in-person event as much as possible, said Hayley Smigley, OttoTHON’s internal events and operations director. Typically a 12-hour event, Sunday’s event was cut in half due to Zoom time limitations.
In a normal year, the marathon dancers on SU campus dance outside of Upstate Golisano for the patients to see from their windows, but this year the “Morale Dance” was not possible. However, participants still danced at the top of every hour and engaged with the children through break-out room sessions and the other scheduled activities.
Smigley and OttoTHON organizers selected nine “miracle kids” to participate in the event, spotlighting their miracle stories via parent video submissions and participating in their favorite activities with them during the day. The event also featured speakers from Upstate Golisano, fitness classes and even a “Top Chef” competition where participants voted the best cook based on video submissions.
Morale Committee member Ronny Ditchek said that even though the event had its limitations, the spirit of OttoTHON reigned strong.
“Everyone was so engaged and so involved as a regular OttoTHON would,” Ditchek said. “Everyone wanted to donate; everyone wanted to participate; everyone wanted to interact with the miracle kids. I’m just very glad we were able to do this for the kids and for the families at Upstate Golisano.”
The OttoTHON event brought a sense of familiarity during the pandemic and gave back to the Syracuse community in creative ways. At the end of the day, OttoTHON successfully donated a total of $121,075.91 in aid to those at Upstate Golisano.
“I’m almost more proud this year than I have in the past two years because we were still able to engage with the kids very well, and it seemed like they had a lot of fun and like that’s what means the absolute most,” said Mya Pfeifer, OttoTHON external communications director.
is a television, radio and film freshman at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and a contributor for The NewsHouse.
