CADETS RAISE $20,000+ DURING INAUGURAL DANCE MARATHON AT WEST POINT SUPPORTING MARIA FARERI CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

The Westchester Medical Center Health Network announced last week that the Cadets at West Point have become the fifth group of college students to support Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), through a multi-hour, Dance Marathon.

The cadets held their inaugural, six-hour, Dance Marathon at West Point event recently at Cullum Hall on the campus of the United States Military Academy and raised $20,217, doubling their original $10,000 goal.  Running from 2 – 8 p.m., Dance Marathon at West Point connected hundreds of cadets from across the country with local children who have battled significant medical challenges at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, the children’s hospital for New York’s Hudson Valley and Fairfield County, Connecticut.

Dance Marathon is a Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals (CMN Hospitals) program held at dozens of universities and colleges across North America.  The Cadets at West Point are the first students at a United States service academy to host a Dance Marathon. During Dance Marathon events students bond with former children’s hospital patients through games, structured activities, fundraising efforts and hours of dancing.

“Cadets at West Point are thrilled to join the growing list of students supporting the advanced care provided to seriously ill and injured children at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital,’’ said Meredith Buono Dagrossa, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. “Dance Marathon is more than a fundraiser. It is an incredibly moving, high- energy event where students, the community and children who benefited from lifesaving and life-changing care come together, along with their families, to support the hospital.’’

The cadet volunteers joined students at Iona College, Mount Saint Mary College, Pace University and the State University of New York (SUNY) at New Paltz as organizers of Dance Marathon events supporting Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital.