Why We THON

With THON weekend officially beginning tonight, I felt as though it only made sense for me to write about why I THON and why Penn State THONs. In terms of my passion blog topic of trying new things and saying "yes" to new opportunities, I must say that getting involved in THON has been the greatest decision that I have made at Penn State thus far. Before I got to campus, I had only heard about it a few times and really didn't have much information about it. This is my advice when it comes to getting involved in things you don't know much about: if it seems right, fun, or educational, do it. If you're afraid or nervous, do it, but do it with a friend by your side. I joined my special interest organization with a friend and that made all the difference.

Photo courtesy of the THON Facebook page.

Here is why I THON, even though I don't have a family member or close friend who has or has had pediatric cancer:

In my freshman year of high school, in the cold of December's winter, just eleven days before Christmas day, there were rumors flying around my school. There were hundreds of high school students looking up the news, refreshing Twitter every few minutes, looking for answers. Something had happened in Newtown, just two towns over from where I was, and we were all so confused. There I was, a freshman in high school, thus far mostly untouched by any tragedies, trying to wrap my head around why my school was on lockdown, why people were talking about Sandy Hook all day, why my principal had gone on the loud speaker and told us to all stop looking up unconfirmed news. Kids had died, someone had shot up Sandy Hook Elementary School, only twenty minutes away from me. The Sandy Hook shooting showed to me the power and confusion around these tragedies and how they can affect everyone.

Photo courtesy of sandyhookpromise.org

When I got to Penn State, I saw my chance to try to make a difference in a currently incurable tragedy by getting involved in THON. That's how I view pediatric cancer, and cancer in general: a tragic part of some family's lives, no matter how hard it is fought and whether or not the fight is one, it is a tragic part of their life. There was no way I could turn a blind eye to little kids getting hurt and passing away, and so I decided to THON with the memory of everyone who was killed in Sandy Hook on December 14th, 2012. I THON to fight this incurable tragedy, so that kids can have another day to smile and experience the joys of life. 

In order to do this, I joined Axis, a smaller special interest organization. Like I said earlier in this post, this was truly the best decision I have made here so far. I have found a new passion in raising money for this cause, made incredible friends, and just had an amazing time all in all. If you are reading this and you aren't involved in THON, or you are involved but not to any particular extent, I personally suggest throwing yourself into it. Get involved- there are only positives to it: helping others, making friends, making memories, and experiencing more. You are given an incredible opportunity here at Penn State to get involved in something bigger than yourself- take advantage of it.

So now I turn the question to you- why do you THON and how did you get involved? To everyone going to the BJC this weekend, good luck, have fun, and see you bright and early Monday morning!