Cancer research fundraising events such as Relay for Life are not unheard of to students around the country, but St. Jude's 'Up ‘til Dawn' is a foreign concept to most. I had never heard of the event until late into my freshman year at Umass Lowell after the event had already taken place. Once I joined a sorority on campus, it was all anyone could talk about.

What is 'Up ‘til Dawn'?

Up ‘til Dawn is a student-led, overnight challenge to celebrate the money teams have raised for St Jude Children’s Hospital. Teams of six people must raise $600, $100 per person, in order to compete in the final challenge. The final challenge, is one night, from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m., where teams compete in different challenges to earn points. The teams with the most points are awarded prizes.

Why is it so important? Why should I participate?

St. Jude Children’s Hospital is extremely different from other hospitals. Patients at St Jude never see a bill. Everything is paid by the hospital. Up ‘til Dawn allows students to raise money for this cause. Every team must raise the minimum amount of $600, but there are always teams that go above and beyond. Participating in this event allows you to raise money to support children battling cancer and other diseases. The treatments at St. Jude have helped to push the survival rate of childhood cancer from 20% to over 80%.

What makes this event so much fun?

The competitive atmosphere makes raising money that much more enjoyable. Fundraising for this fantastic cause is already rewarding, but competing against your friends to raise the most makes it even more fun! The event itself is filled with competitions anywhere from life size Hungry Hungry Hippos to Family Feud. Winning competitions earns you points. There are photo challenges throughout the night that win you points as well, adding to your score.The top three teams win prizes. b

How can you become a part of it?

If your team already hosts your event, all you need to do is go to this website and search your school. Once you find your school’s event you can sign up your team with five other friends. If your school does not already have an event, you can go to this page, and get more information about getting started.

Why do I love Up ‘Til Dawn?

Up ‘til Dawn brought me closer with my sisters. A couple days before our event, one of our sisters, my big sister, found out that her little brother had been diagnosed with leukemia. We changed our team name from Alpha Omega to Andrew’s Team, to show our support for his battle. We fundraised endlessly, wanting to be the top fundraising team. We put our all into every competition that night, trying to earn the most points. At the end of the night, around 5am, exhausted and tired, we sat down to hear the winners. Third and second place were announced, and we waited anxiously to know who had won. Finally, the MC announced Andrew’s Team as the winners. Earlier in the night myself, and four other members of our team decided that if we had won we would donate the $600 prize to Andrew and our sister’s family. We got up on stage and announced to everyone in the room that we were donating the prize money, I watched as my best friend and big sister broke down and cried joyful tears. The rest of my sisters got up on stage and we stood there and hugged, and cried together. That year's event made me realize how much I wanted to be a part of it every year. I applied to be on the executive board and now I am the Social Media Chair for Umass Lowell’s Up ‘til Dawn. I hope to be apart of this event for my next couple years at college and hope to inspire others to take part in this wonderful event.