Jing Zhang, EE3
Jing Zhang
Every early entry student by now has heard of RebelTHON. RebelTHON is EE’s Pharmacy Philanthropy, and it is something very close to my heart. I started freshman year as a committee member, and now as the director of catering, I can confidently say that RebelTHON has become my life and joy.
So for those of you who have heard of the name but are too scared to ask, what exactly is RebelTHON? RebelTHON is a year-long, student-led fundraiser for Children’s Miracle Network hospitals. Originally started by a group of Honors College students in 2012, RebelTHON is part of a national movement of dance marathons where students fundraise for their local CMN hospitals. Our beneficiary is Blair E. Batson Children’s Hospital in Jackson, MS, and it is the only children’s hospital for the 75,000 children in the state of Mississippi. It is also located on our UMMC campus, where SOP students spend their last two years of professional school.
This year, RebelTHON is hoping to raise $60,000 by February 19th, 2016 (#60IN16). That is also the date of our final celebration, a 12-hour dance marathon where we stand on our feet for those who can’t. As you can imagine, it’s pretty difficult to stay awake and energized for 12 hours. That’s why it’s important to find a reason for why you dance so you can be motivated throughout the night.
Why do you dance? All of us are in the School of Pharmacy because we care about something bigger than ourselves. We want to help patients live a better life. RebelTHON is a chance for us to help the sick children of Mississippi so they can grow up and make it to college and experience what we have here at Ole Miss.
Why do I dance? I dance so I can be a part of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ effort to save children’s lives and make miracles happen.
If you need inspirations for why you should dance, just come to our Spirit Week activities next week! Follow us on social media (@RebelTHON on Twitter and IG) and like RebelTHON’s Facebook page, and you’ll be updated on all the fun events RebelTHON has planned for everyone. Last but not least, when in doubt, just do it FOR THE KIDS!
