About Us

 

What is HOPthon?

HOPthon is a year-round community service organization dedicated to advocating for children's health and fundraising for our local Children's Miracle Network Hospital (CMNH).

We host events for the JHU community, most notably Dance Marathon, advocate for children's health, and fundraise for the Child Life Department at Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

 

What is Children's Miracle Network Hospitals?

CMNH helps fill hospital funding gaps by raising money with various fundraising partners and programs to improve the lives of as many children as possible.

CMNH supports over 170 pediatric hospitals across North America. Since its inception in 1983, CMNH has raised over $300 million in support of families and hospitals to ensure that no child is fighting injury or illness alone.

 

How does HOPthon support Johns Hopkins Children's Center?

HOPthon hosts events year round with the department.

By fundraising for HOPthton, you'll be directly supporting the salary of a child life specialist at Johns Hopkins Children's Center, helping breathe life, joy, and hope into the hospitals and the hearts of the children and families being treated.

Child Life Specialists at the department help create a fun and safe environment for children, everything from iPads to distract them as they receive treatment, socioemotional support to understand their diagnoses, and events and programming that ensures that kids get the chance to be kids, no matter what.

 

What is Dance Marathon?

Dance Marathon is HOPthon's flagship event.

Miracle Network Dance Marathon unites students across the country that are fundraising for their school's Children's Miracle Network Hospital. Students gain leadership, teamwork, and nonprofit business experience while raising funds and awareness.

At Hopkins, our year-end Dance Marathon lasts 8 hours and students get to meet patient families, participate in games and dancing, enjoy entertainment from Hopkins performance groups, get a big surprise from President Daniels and reveal our annual fundraising total!

In 2019, Dance Marathons across the country fundraised over $44 million for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals!

To learn more about Dance Marathon, check out the ABC's of Dance Marathon from CMNH here