College of Medicine

September 2014

First came the big dance, and then came the big check. On Sept. 18, representatives from Dance Marathon at Florida State University and Children’s Miracle Network at UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital came to the FSU College of Medicine with a generous check that will benefit children throughout Gadsden and Leon counties.

The proceeds — $383,562.92 — are part of the record $782,000 raised in March by Dance Marathon, the largest student-run philanthropy on the Florida State campus. Children’s Miracle Network at UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital distributes part of the money raised to the FSU medical school for use in pediatric outreach programs.

The College of Medicine is using part of the proceeds to pay for a school-based health program in Gadsden County designed to address health-care disparities among area children. Other projects funded include equipment for the pediatrics unit at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and bereavement services for children at Big Bend Hospice.

Representatives of those groups took turns thanking the students for organizing the event, which requires months and months of preparation. Sometimes it’s easy to forget, said FSU College of Medicine Dean John P. Fogarty (pictured here), that the hard-working organizers are actually full-time students. He praised their dedication and energy — which he saw firsthand when he visited the Civic Center during the marathon.

Among the participants at the check presentation were Mark Amox, executive director of UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital; Paula Fortunas, president and CEO of the TMH Foundation; Nigel Allen, executive director of the Big Bend Hospice Foundation; nurse-practitioner Susan LaJoie, who oversees the Gadsden school-based clinic; student Jenna Jackson, executive director of FSU Dance Marathon, with members of the Dance Marathon student executive committee; and students from the medical school’s Pediatrics Interest Group.