For the Teddi Committee, the Teddi Dance for Love is the event they have had circled on their calendars all year long. 

The Student Life Center is the place to be at 8 pm on Feb. 17 at the Student Life Center. If you want to be a part of the dance for 24 minutes or 24 hours, the Teddi Committee would love to have you. 

The group hopes to one-up last year’s dollar amount of $127,043 in an effort to help even more campers from Camp Good Days and Special Times. The money that is fundraised each year goes directly to the kids and benefits them in more ways than you could imagine. The fundraising efforts have granted the campers opportunities to go on trips to Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, and places only their imaginations could take them if it were not for Teddi.

For those who are unfamiliar with Teddi, here’s what it means to Emily King, captain of Events and Collaboration. “Teddi is a way to come together as a campus and help out an amazing organization and some amazing kids who are going through times tougher than many of us could imagine,” King says her love for Teddi clicked instantly. The sense of community the club holds and projects to campus is something she wanted to be a part of.

When it comes to planning for Teddi, it’s an all-hands-on-deck matter. The planning for the upcoming dance starts almost immediately after the dance that the Teddi Committee put on only weeks before. Between selecting new captains in the spring, meeting to come up with fundraising ideas, and determining what the goals of the upcoming dance should be, the committee is full steam ahead.

As a captain of the Events and Collaboration committee, King says her group is tasked with coming up with events around campus to get the student body involved with Teddi. In years past, there has been a painting session with Mrs. Rooney, kickball and volleyball tournaments, trivia nights, and more. 

Money is raised for Teddi in a multitude of ways. Local businesses regularly donate to the cause as well as families and friends of Teddi members. Each year, the committee hopes to raise the standard from the previous year. At the end of the day, the money raised is for the greater good and means so much to the campers and their families. The Teddi members love seeing the campers run around, smile, dance, and react to the unveiling of the fundraising total. 

If you want to see what Teddi Dance for Love is all about, take a walk down to the SLC on Feb. 17-18 and experience what the dance marathon has to offer. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to stop down to celebrate with classmates, campers, and faculty to make some Teddi memories.

Update: At the conclusion of the 41st Teddi Dance for Love, there was a record figure of $130,000 raised for Camp Good Days & Special Times.