UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — After being held in a virtual format last year, the 2022 Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON) is set to return to the Bryce Jordan Center Feb. 18–20. As the world’s largest student-run philanthropy, THON raises millions of dollars to fund childhood cancer research for Four Diamonds each year.

This year, THON celebrates its 50th anniversary, and there are new COVID-19 protocols in place to support the health and safety of all dancers, families, spectators and volunteers. Dancers will stand at 6 p.m. on Feb. 18 and remain standing for 46 hours. The weekend will be complete with performances, activities and line dancing — which are all made possible by THON’s directors who comprise the executive committee.

Five students in the College of the Liberal Arts are members of the executive committee. Here are their stories.

Caroline Camp

Caroline Camp, a senior majoring in political science and Spanish with a minor in economics, is this year’s THON family relations director. A Schreyer Scholar and Paterno Fellow, Camp became involved with THON during her first year as a dancer relations committee member. The West Chester, Pennsylvania, native then served as a family relations captain during her second and third years. Now, she’s providing emotional support for Four Diamonds families and leading a committee of captains who seek to keep families at the core of THON.

One event the family relations committees host is New Family Orientation, which welcomes new families into THON — it’s a bit of a “crash course” on THON.

“At New Family Orientation in 2020, we met these families, heard their stories and got them excited for THON weekend,” Camp said. “Then actually getting to see them at THON weekend, enjoying the events that we told them about was really, really cool.”

For THON 2022, Camp said helping to ensure the safety of both families and volunteers is essential. To allow THON families with children who are on active treatment to still participate in the joy of THON, Camp said family relations has been creating hybrid opportunities, such as sending families packages and planning Zoom events for the weekend.

“It's been really challenging but exciting to kind of figure out how to blend the best of both worlds of 2020 and 2021 and figuring out how to do it both ways so that all of our families are included,” Camp said.

With THON weekend rapidly approaching, Camp is anticipating seeing people once again fill the BJC with plenty of excitement. She’s looking forward to specific events as well, namely the Kids Fashion Show.

“There’s a lot of different ways to be involved in THON; there’s a lot of different committees,” Camp said. “Figure out where the best fit for you might be and where your skills might be best suited.”

Caleb Klemick

A senior majoring in political science and public relations, Caleb Klemick is this year’s THON entertainment director. In this position, he leads captains and committee members to craft THON’s exciting and engaging environment.

The Paterno Fellow and Schreyer Scholar initially became involved in THON as a first-year student on the entertainment committee.

“I was just sort of looking for a way to make this big place feel small and joined the committee kind of on a whim,” Klemick said. “And man, is it the best decision I think I’ve ever made.”

The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, native then went on to be an entertainment captain for both THON 2020 and 2021.

“Meeting these people who have the same values and want to have the same impact on this organization and just leave an impact on the planet is something that I love, and it’s so rewarding for me,” Klemick said.

Klemick remembers a specific time during THON his first year when his committee had just ended a shift. It was the beginning of the final four hours of THON — noon to 4 p.m. — which marks the conclusion of the event. The group stood together at the top of the BJC, gazing at the packed event below them.

“That was the moment when I thought, ‘This is where I'm supposed to be — at this school with these people,’” he said. “From then on, I’ve been in love with Penn State.”

Klemick said it’s a “dream come true” to be approaching an in-person THON again.

“You can see everything falling into place and feel the excitement ramp up,” he said.  “It's crazy but such an awesome feeling. Just counting down the days now!”

Nolan Marett

In his fifth year with THON, Nolan Marett is this year’s public relations director. The psychology major started as a photographer on the public relations committee during his first year. He continued as a public relations committee member his second year and then became a public relations captain for THON 2020 and 2021.

As the public relations director, Marett works with 26 captains to spread THON’s mission and increase support for Four Diamonds families.

“Last year, after seeing how THON was able to put it in a virtual environment and take the hard place that a lot of people were in and turn that into something so good,” Marett said, “[it] made me realize that THON is so special in that it is not unique to the BJC.

"We were able to turn everything virtual and still have such a successful year," Marett added.

Originally planning to graduate in December 2021, the Lansdale, Pennsylvania, native decided to stay with THON for one more year to continue to make an impact on THON and Four Diamonds families. And, getting to be back in the BJC shortly is “extremely, extremely exciting.”

“We're so blessed to be able to invite our families back into the BJC to have everyone back there,” he said.

Marett said each volunteer is utilizing what they learned during virtual THON 2021 about the organization’s universality and applying it to elevate THON 2022 — he’s “really proud” of everyone.

“Everything that we do should have our families at the focus — that is the entire purpose of our community and our mission,” Marett said.

Carol Melo

Carol Melo, a senior majoring in economics, is this year’s fundraising safety director, where she’s serving as a resource for fundraising organizations and overseeing captains who administer and monitor fundraising practices to support the utmost safety and effectiveness.

As a second-year student, the East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, native first became involved in THON as a rules and regulations committee member. For THON 2021, she served as a rules and regulations fundraising safety captain.

Helping others has always been a part of Melo’s life. During her first year of high school, she was introduced to Mini-THON, and she loved it. While choosing to attend Penn State, the thought of being fully immersed in Mini-THON’s parent organization was exciting.

During one THON, Melo’s committee was on a shift late at night — approximately 2 a.m. After an evening of events, the BJC was relatively empty, and Melo was placed in the upper bowl of the BJC behind the THON stage.

“It was 2 a.m., and I was tired,” she said. “But the energy was always there. My committee members just became close with one another. We danced it out. We cried. We hugged. There were still [people] there for the cause. That was so magical, getting that snapshot.”

As someone who enjoys organizing and planning, Melo has thoroughly enjoyed preparing for THON weekend. She’s taking lessons from THON 2021 to reach people outside of the BJC during the weekend. And through teamwork and plenty of communication, Melo said the executive committee has worked to ensure everyone feels safe and comfortable.

Walking into the BJC on THON weekend can be monumental — Melo’s looking forward to seeing committee members and captains experience this.

“The sky’s the limit,” Melo said. “THON is such a large organization that there’s room for everyone to be part of it … Everyone can provide a different perspective.

“We couldn’t do any of this without every single one of our volunteers," added Melo.

Tyler Saiers

A senior majoring in labor and human resources, Tyler Saiers serves as THON 2022’s event safety director, in charge of the efforts to help everyone — including families, volunteers, and spectators — at all THON events, be as safe as possible.

Saiers first became involved with THON during his first year as a rules and regulations committee member. He wasn’t initially familiar with THON, but he wanted to get involved with something unique to Penn State. During his second and third years, the Williamsport, Pennsylvania, native was an rules and regulations event safety captain.

“It truly has been amazing,” he said. “It makes me almost speechless every year.”

During THON 2021, Saiers was one of the captains in the BJC, helping performing acts enter and exit the BJC safety. Even with the much more vacant BJC, the weekend was still “magical.”

“Even though we weren’t together, we could still have that feeling of togetherness and unity and all that we had done throughout the year,” Saiers said.

Now, Saiers is looking forward to returning to the BJC and experiencing the magic of THON weekend once again. He has enjoyed ensuring that everyone is equipped to execute the weekend.

“I always said I just wanted to be involved in THON and I didn’t care where — I think that that’s really true to this day,” Saiers said. “Try something new. Whether that’s a new position, being a captain, or wanting to do a different committee, there's so much that you can do in THON, and you're not limited to where you're at.

“Try something you’d think you would like, because it’s honestly a great experience," he concluded.