St. Ambrose Dance Marathon raises funds, celebrates kids at Stead Family Children’s Hospital
By Rachel Davis
St. Ambrose University Dance Marathon (SAUDM) is hosting their annual Big Event on Saturday, April 22 to raise funds for the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. The Marathon takes place at the St. Ambrose University Wellness and Recreation Center, 518 West Locust Street in Davenport.
St. Ambrose Dance Marathon is the university’s largest student-run philanthropic group. It’s a culmination of fundraising that goes on all year by participants, known as dancers, to celebrate the lives of children and families treated at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
The event is open to students, alumni, sponsors, faculty, staff, volunteers and the SAUDM miracle families. Throughout the event, participants will be their feet for 13.1 hours to celebrate the lives of the children and their families being treated at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. There are presentations, dances and other events scheduled throughout the entire day. The Marathon raised over $250,000 last year, despite COVID-19 challenges. The fundraising for this year starts at 11 a.m. on Saturday and will conclude at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday. The funds raised will be revealed at midnight, after a full day of celebrating local kids who receive treatment at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
The Marathon has raised over $1.9 million for the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital since its inception and has funded a Child Life Resource Space, NICU equipment, a brand-new inclusive playground for the UI Center for Disabilities and Development and research and training for Ponseti International. The goal for this year’s fundraising is the General Nursing Fund at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. This donation will be the largest ever given to pediatric nursing at the hospital and will provide funding for staff development activities, recognition and engagement events, shadowing at other sites and overall education.
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