Started by Heritage alumnus Seraphina Hsiao, the Miracle Network Dance Marathon (MNDM) has been steadfast in its goal of raising funds for the local Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. MNDM hosted their annual Dance Marathon for 2025 after school March 7 where they fundraised and celebrated their achievement of bringing in over $8,167.
Although the main event has always been the Dance Marathon, MNDM members work all year round to organize smaller fundraising events in preparation. These include things like selling popcorn or participating in the fine arts festival where lower school students can donate a few dollars to make slime at the club’s booth.
Every year, the club chooses a different theme for the event — this year’s being the carnival — before dealing with the more difficult matter of money. “We usually decide on a theme…and reach out to different businesses to get donations for our event,” one of the club’s presidents, junior Anneliese Hsiao, said. “For example, our DJ, balloons, food, raffle prizes, etc. were donated by either businesses or our club members. People are usually willing to help since it is for such a good cause.”
Planning an event of this scale is extensive and typically requires several months of planning and coordination. “It takes us around 3-4 months to plan the fundraiser since many arrangements need to be taken care of ahead of time,” Hsiao said. “It’s definitely a lengthy process to plan since there are so many different factors that go into such a big event.”
With no official budget, the event is entirely funded by donations and the proceeds from the aforementioned smaller fundraisers hosted throughout the year. The club was also required to use more creative methods to advertise the event, offering service points for attendance to the Pre-Medical track, Science National Honor Society, National Honor Society and National Junior Honor Society students as the morning announcements were absent in the time leading up to the event.
Despite these obstacles, the club was still able to make the event a success. The hard work of the team and the generosity of the local community made both presidents proud of what they accomplished. “I think we did everything in our power to make it the best event we could,” said Hsiao.
The club is already looking to the future to continue growing and raising more funds according to co-president, junior Mia Rosen. “We will continue to raise money for the hospital and make even more than years past by networking more before the event to try and get as many people as possible to come to our event,” Rosen said.
With over $8,000 raised this year, MNDM’s commitment to supporting the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital remains unwavering, and presidents Rosen and Hsiao are already looking forward to next year’s event.
Participants from various grade levels and service clubs joined in to support the cause. Many of the attendees participated in the many carnival games such as Spin the Wheel, Ball Toss, Cornhole, etc. (Photos/Lezley Hsiao)
The values of the raffle prizes range from $25 all the way up to $400. The club was only able to afford them due to their “many donors such as DJ Lawrence, Angelo’s Pizza, Dominos, Sweets by Jenny, Xtreme Action Park and Balloons by Ms. Abramson, as well as the school and maintenance for letting us use the gym,” Anneliese Hsiao said. (Photos/Lezley Hsiao and Arsh Lalani)
The club’s key members, pictured from left to right, Anneliese Hsiao, Mia Rosen, Kristabella Rodriguez, Eunice Cheung, Deana VanDelft, Samantha Almonte Pineda and Karoline Sierra hold up signs spelling out the amount of money made over the past year. (Photos/Lezley Hsiao and Arsh Lalani)
