This weekend, Onward State published an article entitled, “Why I Don’t THON: Penn State Students Share Their Stories.” In it, Melissa McCleery (the author) provides anonymous quotes from students who emailed her with their reasons for choosing not to participate in the 46 hour dance marathon that is such a staple at Penn State. I love that this article focuses on the students who choose not to participate in THON. I think it is important at a university that both sides of the story are shared. More importantly, one thing that I have always loved about Penn State was that, I felt, that we did not have that one thing that everyone needed to do to be an accepted Penn Stater. At other universities, that “one thing” might be joining Greek Life or becoming an athlete. That’s what has always made Penn State stand out to me – there are so many activities for students to get involved with that we typically don’t feel a pressure to join any one thing in particular. If I had to name something at Penn State that made me feel that certain pressure, it would be THON. So many organizations and clubs add on committees that are primarily dedicated to THON. During THON weekend, our campus is eerily empty. It’s almost as if, if you are not excited and passionate about THON, you’re an outcast. While I love that THON unites Penn State students and is something that we can all be proud of, I too, have had my reasons for not getting fully involved with THON.

For me, I’m not sure why, but THON doesn’t appeal to me in the die-hard ways that it does other students. Sure, I think it is for a great cause and I am always amazed that students can work so hard to raise so much money for others. But for some reason, it just hasn’t appealed to me in that way. I’ve gone on canning trips and had fun with members of my organization dancing and cheering on street corners to raise money. Last year, I even stayed at THON for 20 consecutive hours and had a blast. And sure, I was moved to tears during the family hour and ranted afterwards about how life changing THON was, but now as I look back, I wonder if it was the cause that changed my life, or because I felt like I was apart of the Penn State culture. As THON approached this year, I had little desire to go. In fact, I was excited to finally have a quiet weekend in my room, relaxing and doing work. I ended up going for a few hours, and was bored within an hour of being there. As I think about why I might not be as moved by everything that is THON, a few things come to mind:

1) I recognize that it is a great cause, but it is not one that hits home for me. I don’t mean to suggest that I have to have a personal connection to something in order to help, but when I’m passionate or dedicated to something, there is usually a personal tie that keeps me going. I just don’t feel that with THON.

2) THON weekend itself does not do it for me. The long wait to get into the BJC, the awful experiences of trying to find seats, feeling pushed out by Greek organizations (that are larger in number) from certain sections, it all just feels so fraudulent. I am usually surprised that certain people who are so dedicated to THON can sometimes be so rude during the weekend. If it’s truly about the kids, you should not worry about someone encroaching on your section of seats. If this event is meant to unite us all, why behave in certain ways that make people feel unwelcomed. As someone in the article brought up, to me, THON weekend feels like it is more about the pictures, or bragging about how long you stayed there, or competing to see who raised the most money, and that just does not sit all too well with me.

3) I prefer community service than philanthropy- again, acknowledging that THON is for a great cause, I usually enjoy doing actual service for someone else. I think it is great that we raise so much money for these children, but I like feeling like I’ve done something more.

I am glad that Onward State published this article. I think the students who are quoted raised some valid points that those who are involved with THON should acknowledge and work to change in the future.