Thon is a two day annual dance marathon put together by students at Penn State with the sole purpose of raising money to help fund research for pediatric cancer. It is the largest student run philanthropy in the entire world. They represent themselves through the letters FTK, or "for the kids!" Thon has become a Penn State tradition, and something to look forward to every single year.
Thon is unlike any other philanthropy because of the way they present themselves. Instead of an organization that hands out flyers asking for donations and putting cans places by themselves Penn state students are much more involved in the cause. They go on "canning weekends" where instead of just putting a can somewhere they walk around representing our school and talking to people about the cause. I think this makes the cause much more personal to people because after they get to actually hear actual students talk about Thon they want to donate to it. Also, instead of it just being a cause they donate money to the students go one step further and make it a dance marathon that lasts an entire weekend. All of this effort truly shows how much the students care about the children being affected by pediatric cancer.
Everything students do for Thon can be analyzed in rhetoric because the whole reason they are so selfless is in order to persuade others to donate money and support the cause. They try to appeal to many different audiences such as other students and adults all over the communities they travel to. And it obviously works well because like I stated earlier, it is the most successful student run philanthropy in the world!
When I was thinking of applying to Penn State, my guidance counselor began talking to me about thon. I though it sounded really cool and might be fun to be a part of, but I was definitely surprised when I saw just how much the students care and actually participate. Everyone is really involved and they do everything and anything they can to raise money for a great cause.
ReplyDeleteNow that I'm finally getting around to commenting on everyone's posts from last week, THON has already come and gone. I was there everyday and was so moved by the whole thing.
DeleteI think Jay Paterno put it best when he visited the BJC to speak on Sunday. He said, "When people doubt what Penn State is all about, let them come to THON... If you want to know what Penn State is and you want to know what 'We Are' means... Come to THON."
We Are Penn State and We Are THON. That's something to be proud of.