These are the ingredients that make up raiseRED, the University of Louisville’s largest student-run philanthropy that has raised over $4.7 million for pediatric cancer and blood disorders research and patient support since 2013.

“Fight Like a Kid” is the theme of this year’s raiseRED, which will be held Friday through Saturday, Feb. 23-24, at the Swain Student Activities Center Ballroom.

raiseRED is a dance marathon that benefits UofL’s Division of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology and the Norton Children’s Cancer Institute outpatient clinic. Participants raise a minimum of $200 per person to participate, with many raising even more.

“Every dollar fundraised for raiseRED goes directly to either research for pediatric oncology or to the patients themselves,” Emilia Perez, a UofL student who was diagnosed with lymphoma in high school, said. “Everything we raise is going to benefit someone personally.”

The event kicks off at 6 p.m., Friday, Feb. 23, and culminates with the big reveal of total dollars raised at the Community Celebration from 10:30 a.m.-noon, Saturday, Feb. 24.

In between, students will kick up their heels. To keep up their spirits – and help keep their eyes open – several mini-themed events are held during raiseRED. Among them are:

• Buzz for the Cure: A long-standing raiseRED tradition, students pledge to shave their head, or do a major chop, during the dance marathon if they reach their fundraising goal.
• Angel Hour: The people in participants’ lives who have been impacted by cancer and blood disorders are recognized and remembered.��
• Mail Call: Letters of support from participants’ loved ones are read to cheer them on.
• Silent Disco: The speaker system goes silent and participants wear headphones to hear and dance to music only they can hear.

It’s the cause of helping others battling cancer and giving second chances that is the core of the effort, said Sophie Doszak, a junior at UofL.

Doszak was swabbed by the during raiseRED in 2022 and received the call last year that she had matched with a leukemia patient.��

“I would not have donated without raiseRED,” Doszak said. “Seeing the impact that you can have on someone’s life made me wish I had gotten on the donor list a long time ago. Most of the time it takes years to finally match with someone, and I was lucky enough to match with someone and give my gift of life to someone who needed another chance at life.”

The event will be beginning at 6 p.m. Friday. For information and to donate,

After a postponed and scaled-back event in 2020, Cruzin’ for Cancer organizer Richard Luce Jr. wanted to do more. The seventh annual Bullitt County fundraising event again will include a car, truck and motorcycle show, a model car show, an arts and crafts show, silent auction and vendors on Saturday, June 12, at Hillview Community Center. As with the previous shows, proceeds will support cancer patients at the and cancer research at the .

An additional car show competition will launch the series on Saturday, April 17, and monthly car cruises through October, all at Gethsemane Baptist Church, also will raise funds for the Brown Cancer Center. Full event details are below.

“I have been wanting to do more for the cancer center, and this year we were given the opportunity to add the event in April,” Luce said. “And people love to show off their cars, so we added day cruises through the summer. We want to keep up the momentum and continue to increase awareness of cancer prevention and treatment and to support the work being done at UofL.”

Luce began the annual Cruzin’ for Cancer events after his father died from cancer in 2013.

The April 17 show at Gethsemane Baptist Church will commemorate the church’s 75^th anniversary. The show has a rain date of April 24.

The June 12 highlight event will feature the car, truck, motorcycle, model and craft show, along with UofL cancer researcher , who will discuss his work to beat cancer. The Kentucky Cancer Program mobile mammography unit also will be on site and conduct mammograms from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

In May, July, August, September and October, day cruises will allow owners to display their vehicles and include 50/50 raffles and food trucks.

Proceeds from all events will benefit cancer research at UofL, patient support at the�� at the UofL Health – Brown Cancer Center and the , which provides cancer education and prevention services. Admission to all events is free, but donations are appreciated.

Register or support the events with sponsorships or donations at .��

The full schedule for this year’s Cruzin’ for Cancer events includes:��

Gethsemane Baptist Church 75^th Anniversary Car Show:��Saturday, April 17, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Rain date: Saturday, April 24);��Gethsemane Baptist Church, 10400 Blue Lick Rd.��Trophies, food truck, 50/50 raffle.

Cruzin’ for Cancer:��Saturday, June 12, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Hillview Community Center, 298 Prairie Dr. Seventh annual car, truck, motorcycle and models show, plus crafts, vendors, silent auction, food truck and mammogram screening, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Insurance is accepted. To schedule an appointment for a mammogram at the show, call 502-852-6318.

Day Cruzin’:��May 15, July 17, Aug. 21, Sept. 18 and Oct. 16, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.,��Gethsemane Baptist Church, 10400 Blue Lick Rd. Car exhibit, 50/50 raffles and food trucks.

It’s what makes University of Louisville’s athletics department’s partnership with raiseRED – the largest, on-campus student-led philanthropic campaign that fights to end pediatric cancer – an all-around victory.

The deal centers around a plan called Flight 23, which provides students admission to every home regular season home game for all 23 sports, including football and men’s and women’s basketball, for $10 per month.

Athletics is donating $2 to raiseRED for every Flight 23 member that attends a home football game (up to $10,000 total) and $1 to raiseRED for every member that attends a home men’s basketball game (up to $20,000 total).

can be purchased online through each student’s .

In previous years, athletics has donated a portion of funds for every student season ticket purchase referred by raiseRED, which focuses year-round efforts on supporting research and funding of the UofL Department of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology.

Last school year, raiseRED fundraised a record $682,483, a figure that could be surpassed with the new partnership.

Though the partnership dates back to at least 2016, last year’s successful single-game initiatives between athletics and raiseRED signaled opportunities for continued growth.

On Jan. 31, Louisville’s women’s basketball welcomed 11-time national champion Connecticut to the KFC Yum! Center for raiseRED Student Night. Head coach Jeff Walz and provost Beth Boehm agreed to donate $10 each to raiseRED for every student in attendance. By the end of the night, the Cardinals knocked off the Huskies and raiseRED was on the receiving end of a $10,000 check. Earlier that year, men’s soccer and athletics marketing teamed up to donate $1,000 to raiseRED in appreciation of the organization helping drive student attendance to the match.

Athletics will continue its student night initiatives with raiseRED during the fall and winter seasons leading up to the Dance Marathon, which is held annually in February.��

“We are very thankful for our partnership with athletics,” said Cole Hetzler, raiseRED’s university outreach coordinator. “It speaks to the community that we have here at UofL, and how we all support each other.”

It was hard to plan much as she juggled her��full-time job as a high school counselor at Central High School and taught��COMM 111 on campus, while also raising her daughter. But now her daughter (Taylor Brown) is 24 – “old enough to take care of herself” – and is finishing her master’s degree in physiology at UofL, which has afforded Brown more time to focus on her scholarship goal.

And so on Derby night, May 6, from 8 p.m. to midnight, Brown and her bandmates in NightBreeze will play in the University Ballroom to raise money for the new Gloria Jean Churchill Scholarship. The goal is to sell 200 tickets and award one Central High School senior a $1,000 scholarship to attend college.

“My sister always expressed wanting to help children accomplish their dream. I wanted to use every avenue that I have and pull every person that I know who is an educator to get that help,” Brown said.

During the event, Brown, the vocalist for NightBreeze, also wants to collect donations for Safe Place on Crittenden Drive, which houses students who cannot return home due to poor circumstances such as abuse.

“I have to send students there regularly who are in abusive environments. Every school in Jefferson County has had to send kids to Safe Place and people don’t like to talk about what happens when kids are in those environments, but this is real,” Brown said.

She is seeking donations such as shampoo, deodorant, feminine hygiene products, new underwear in all sizes, comforters and blankets and African American hair products.

Brown picked Derby night to��host the fundraiser because it’s “Louisvillians’ Christmas.”

“There is a spirit of love and giving and camaraderie and helping one another during Derby time. That is the spirit I am trying to embody,” she said. “Yes, people like to party, but let’s do it with a purpose. Let’s listen to great music and dance and eat and still make a difference in somebody’s life.”

NightBreeze plays jazz, top 40 and R&B music. The event will also include a DJ, food and a cash bar. Tickets for the NightBreeze Derby Celebration are .

The last song was mix of some of the hits they’d listened to during the raiseRED Dance Marathon, Friday and Saturday, in the SAC Multipurpose Room.

As the words “I’m gonna stand by you” from Rachel Platten blared from the speakers, raiseRED’s executive board unveiled the total amount raised number by number on poster boards: $459,402.50.

The crowd erupted. On stage, raiseRED’s executive board hugged, cried and pumped their fists in the air, celebrating a year of hard work.

The 2017 total is the most the group has ever raised. More than 1,100 dancers, also a record, participated in the marathon. Each dancer committed to raise at least $100 to participate.

“I thank you for believing in our mission and giving hope to these families,” said Ellie Romes, operations director for raiseRed.

Money goes directly to support pediatric cancer research and care at the University of Louisville. As the students celebrated their success, Ashok Raj, MD, stood not far away in awe of the students, admiring their “selflessness, compassion and love.”

Raj, UofL’s interim chief, division of pediatric hematology and oncology, went on to explain,”We had 78 families last year that heard those four��dreaded words: your child has cancer.”

The money raised from raiseRED can have a huge impact on young patients and their families. Money from the fundraiser has helped fund research on cancer vaccines, as well as provided clinical improvements to support families, including a full-time social worker.

Raj arrived at around 8 a.m. Saturday to cheer the students on and let them know he stood with them. He said he would never be able to find the right words to thank them for their service.

“This just makes you feel like humanity still exists,” Raj said.

The marathon kicked off at 6 p.m. Friday. Throughout the night, dancers heard words of encouragement from those impacted by pediatric cancer. It was also fun, though, with themed-hours like a “Rave Hour,” “Hakuna Matata,” and “2 Legit 2 Sit.”

Supporters also stopped by, including interim President Greg Postel, Louie the Cardinal Bird, UofL student athletes, The Kentucky Derby Festival Princesses and even some Disney Princesses.

Leigha Moore, a sophomore from Union, stood not far from the stage after the final announcement, exhausted, but joyful. She’s danced in the marathon for four years, and each year, sees the amount raised beat the previous year.

She started dancing because she’s known people touched by cancer.

And though the 18-hour marathon takes it’s toll on her, she said it was worth it to be able to step up and help families and the community.

“It’s really emotional to see this total,” Moore said.

‘Running Man’ joins the cause

Connor Jackson, an engineering student from Mt. Sterling, could hear some of the students from back of the room. He was not among the dancers – he instead spent a good portion of the evening on a treadmill, running to support the fight against pediatric cancer.

Whenever he stepped off of the treadmill, another student hopped on to keep the treadmill going. In all, students ran 193 miles. Jackson ran 52.4 – the equivalent of two marathons – on his own. His friend, Alex Lavesque, a Bowling Green sophomore, ran 20.2 miles.

Jackson, dubbed “Running Man” for the night, said the dancers and families stopped by to offer support. And from the stage, he could hear some of the stories from families who had been impacted by raiseRED.

“Some of the stories got me misty-eyed,” he said.

raiseRED is continuing to take donations online at raisered.org. .��

“It bothers me when people do not know what Huntington’s Disease is, yet so many people are affected by this. After losing my grandmother and being able to understand the disease more, it really put a drive in me to do this event,” Shaughnessey said.

Huntington’s disease is a fatal genetic disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain and affects approximately 30,000 Americans. Symptoms usually appear between the ages of 30 and 50. Patients affected by the disease develop chorea (involuntary movements), difficulties with cognition and often psychiatric manifestations such as depression and irritability.

The Huntington’s Disease Center of Excellence is part of UofL Physicians Parkinson’s Disease and . The center works to improve the lives of people affected by the disease with an elite multidisciplinary approach to care and research. It is one of 41 Huntington’s disease Centers of Excellence in the United States.

Dancers and spectators of all ages and abilities are invited to participate in Dance4Hope. Proceeds from the marathon will support UofL’s research into the causes and potential therapies for Huntington’s disease. Shaughnessey hopes to raise $5,000.

“We appreciate Breann’s efforts to support the center and we share her mission to improve the lives of individuals suffering from this devastating neurodegenerative disorder,” said Kathrin LaFaver, MD, director of the UofL Physicians Movement Disorders center and assistant professor of neurology at the UofL School of Medicine.

Dance4Hope Marathon:

When:���� Sunday, March 5, 1-5 p.m.

Where: Manhattan on Broadway, 716 East Broadway, Louisville

Benefitting:�� Center of Excellence at University of Louisville

Register: Sign up through March 4.��