The Carolina for the Kids Dance Marathon fundraiser kicked off Monday, with potential members being recruited all around campus in an effort to raise money for UNC Children’s Hospital.

The Carolina for the Kids Foundation is a student-run organization that provides emotional, medical and financial support for the patients of UNC Children’s Hospital. The organization holds an annual Dance Marathon fundraiser, which engages the campus community to support the families of these patients.

Dance Marathon is a 24-hour, no-sitting, no-sleeping event in which students pledge to each raise $200 to support UNC Children’s Hospital. 2018 marks the 20th year of this annual event, according to a CFTK press release.

Hannah Dix, the executive director of CFTK and a four-time Dance Marathon participant, said the theme will be “Through the Years,” and this year they want to focus on the legacy of the foundation.

“We really want to connect with our alumni through this event,” Dix said. “We definitely want to use the impact that Carolina for the Kids has had over the past 20 years — not just necessarily this year — to show dancers and the community what we’re up to and why this cause is so important.”

PHOTO: Marissa Devine, a CFTK chairperson, and her team during hour 24 of the 2017 Dance Marathon. (CREDIT: Marissa Devine)

Dix said the recruitment for Dance Marathon is a week-long event with a variety of outreach techniques, such as social media campaigns and free information around campus.

Dancer recruitment is advertised in the Pit daily from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. throughout the week, and the morale team of CFTK choreographed a special “Pit Dance” to generate interest and get people excited, said Dara Burg, the CFTK publicity chair.

For Burg, meeting the patients and families who she pledged money for is the best part of the annual event. She said during her first year, she knew they would visit in the final hour, but she was not prepared for how she would feel.

“You can actually see the stories and the actual kids you’re helping right in front of you,” she said. “That’s just a really emotional time period. You really can see the difference that you’re making. And after that, I mean you’ve been standing for 23 hours, you’ve been awake for 23 hours. You just really feel very, very emotional.”

Over the past 20 years, CFTK has served 20,000 families and raised nearly $1.2 million to support the patients and families of the UNC Children’s Hospital, according to a press release.

Marissa Devine, a CFTK chairperson, said this year’s Dance Marathon will be a celebration of everything that has been accomplished in the past 20 years. She said there are many surprises planned for students this year, in addition to the anticipated performances from campus groups.

Devine said being part of Dance Marathon is one of the most rewarding things she has been involved in at UNC.

“The passion behind every individual within the organization is enormous and fantastic,” she said. “The 24 hours serves as a symbol for the emotional and physical support you can provide to families and patients of (UNC Children’s Hospital). And you get to do it with roughly 2,000 of the best, most passionate Tar Heels at UNC.”

Dix said that after her first year at the event, she realized she could not imagine her college experience without CFTK and Dance Marathon.

“I remember thinking to myself, ‘I think I could go longer. I don’t want to ever stop doing this,’” she said. “It was an eye-opening moment for me, that this was exactly what my purpose was at Carolina. This is what I came to Carolina to do.”

@KarenPStahl