May 7, 2023 2 min read

South Fayette High School’s Mini-THON fundraiser this year not only broke a school record, but was also the most successful Mini-THON event in the nation.

All told, $336,140 was raised in the fight against childhood cancer this year at the high school, exceeding the 2022 total by $80,000 and the initial 2023 goal of $275,000. It also set a national record, breaking the previous record set by Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg in 2019 by $5,000.

Over 11 years, South Fayette High School’s Mini-THON has raised more than $1.4 million for Four Diamonds, an organization dedicated to the fight against pediatric cancer at Penn State Children’s Hospital. Four Diamonds covers the cost of treatment that insurance or other means do not cover. The organization also helps with other emergency expenses for the families of children battling cancer, as well as pediatric cancer research aimed at finding a cure and more gentle treatments.

Mini-THON consists of 12 hours of dancing, games and celebrating that started at the high school on Friday, April 28, and continued into Saturday, April 29. The fundraising event is the capstone of Brandon Flannery’s honors management and marketing applications course. In this second-semester, senior-level course, students used skills in event management, promotion, ticketing, corporate sponsorship, and fundraising to plan, manage, and market Mini-THON. Their jobs included recruiting participants, developing sponsorship packages, soliciting donations and managing social media.

This year, about 800 students, nearly three-quarters of South Fayette High School’s student body, were registered to participate in Mini-THON.