Engineering students in the Benton Engineering Council are celebrating Pi Day by raising funds for Dance Marathon at the University of Florida. Dance Marathon is an annual 26.2-hour event benefiting the patients of UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital in Gainesville, Florida. Each year, more than 800 students stay awake and on their feet to raise money and awareness for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.
The Pi Day fundraiser is organized entirely by students in the BEC. Traditionally, the BEC holds on-campus events including invited guest speakers or pie-in-the-faces. This year, in order to reach a broader audience, the BEC decided to host an online campaign on March 14th, encouraging students and supporters to donate a minimum amount of $3.14 toward DM.
“Over the past few years Pi Day has become the largest annual fundraiser BEC does just days before the annual Dance Marathon to raise money for the Children’s Miracle network,” said Michael Chen, vice president of programs for BEC, in an email. “This year we really wanted to up the ante because our DM team’s goal is to raise a certain amount more than last year.”
Donors to the BEC Dance Marathon team will be recognized by having his/her name shown in a display case in Weil Hall.
Donations for the BEC Dance Marathon page can be made at: http://events.dancemarathon.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.team&teamID=12215