Washington, Trinity high school competitors become college allies for THON
Chairpersons of Penn State Club Cross Country’s Miles for Smiles THON fundraiser were, from left, Megan Ellery of Cranberry, Andrew Weller of West Chester, Austin Sperl, a Washington grad, and Stephen Day III, who graduated from Trinity.
The final runner of the 46-hour treadmill relay, Raymond Friend of Collegeville, finishes 11 miles in one hour.
The event’s total donation amount of $45,798 is revealed.
In their late teens, Austin Sperl and Stephen Day were amicable competitors as cross country runners in their respective high schools. Sperl graduated in 2016 from Washington High School and Day graduated in 2017 from Trinity, but once they got together as schoolmates at Penn State University, they became cooperative and supportive allies.
As members of the university’s cross country club, they joined close to 80 other club members and participated in Miles to Smiles, the largest fundraiser the team organizes to raise money for THON. In turn, THON, short for marathon, is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world that raises funds and awareness for the fight against childhood cancer.
“THON is really big,” said Sperl, 21, a junior civil engineering major. “Over the years, it’s raised close to $10 million(for charity).”
The club began planning for this year’s fifth annual Miles for Smiles marathon back in August and September. Things came to a head at 6 p.m. Jan. 25 when the team members began taking turns on two treadmills at the West Student Commons on campus and continued running for the next 46 hours.
“The runners ran for either a half-hour or an hour, and, when one runner ended his or her session, another started on the other treadmill,” said Day, 20, a sophomore supply chain management major. “The runners could run at any pace they chose, but most wanted to run as fast as they could to build up our collective mileage total.”
At the end of the marathon, the team of 80 ran a total of 406.76 miles and raised $45,798. Sperl, who served as primary chair of the club team, contributed 4.77 miles while Day, the club’s fundraising and finance chair, contributed 4.82 miles.
Along with two other co-chairs, Andrew Weller from Westchester and Megan Ellery of Cranberry, Sperl and Day had the responsibility of making sure the event ran as smoothly as possible over the entire weekend.
“Right before the event, one of our treadmills wouldn’t start,” Day said. “Luckily, we had a third one in storage.”
“We themed every hour to make it interesting for the spectators,” Sperl said. “To help pass the time, the spectators could do things like play video games, write a letter to one of the runners, even help us blow up decorative balloons at 3 in the morning.”
To qualify for the marathon, participants were required to find at least four sponsors. Eighty of the runners came through with four sponsors each, who made either a cash contribution or a per mile donation. Almost all of the $45,798 raised came from sponsors who contributed between $5 and a several thousand dollars to the cause.
In Sperl’s freshman year (2017) the Miles for Smiles team ran 386.65 miles and raised $15,692. In his sophomore year and Day’s freshman year (2018) the team ran 394.21 miles and raised $30,464.
“Miles for Smiles is something the cross country club created themselves,” Sperl said. “Since THON started in 1973, it has become the largest alternative THON fundraiser in history.”
Miles for Smiles is modeled after the main THON event, scheduled for Feb. 15 to 17, which requires couples to dance continuously for 46 hours without sitting or sleeping. The cross country club has five couples who will participate in the marathon, and Sperl and Day will be in attendance supporting the dancers and making sure the spectators have a good time.
“During the event, we’ll get to hang out socially with THON families and their children during the dance,” Day said.
THON donates all the money received from the fundraiser to Four Diamonds, which covers 100 percent of all medical expenses related to cancer care not covered by insurance for eligible Four Diamonds children. Because of the community’s steady and generous support, Four Diamonds has assisted 100 percent of the childhood cancer patients who have been treated at Penn State Children’s Hospital.
Miles for Smiles is just one of the cross country club’s fundraising efforts for THON. They also holdtTrivia nights in which each participant is charged a $5 entry fee and stage a 5K Donut Dash, where participants get to subtract two minutes off their run time for every doughnut they eat on each lap.
Both Sperl and Day plan to run in next year’s Miles for Smiles. In the meantime, as members of the cross country club, they get to compete against other D-3 club teams like Bethany College, Lock Haven, Princeton, Michigan and Purdue. In the past both have run in the Pittsburgh Half Marathon and Day has also run in the Philadelphia Half Marathon. Both intend to sign on for this year’s Pittsburgh Half Marathon.
Miles for Smiles is still accepting donations to the cause. Those wanting to see a video of the event or to contribute can do so at the club’s Miles for Smiles Facebook page.