Jan 25, 20223 min read

The Moral(e) Of The Story: How Ben Rembaum Leads The Charge For Children Miracle Network Hospitals

(Image courtesy of Knight-Thon)

Until recently, I never understood my parents when they said how a person doesn't age. When discussing friendships, my mom would say how Alissa always smiled, or my dad would say how Elliot would always stand up for what he believed in at any time or place. I know I am young, but for me, Ben doesn't age. He might be a current senior whose involved rivals that of Elle Woods. But, he will always be the kid I mentored when I was a senior, and he was a freshman. In the past three years, Rembaum has been an active Jewish community member via Hillel, Chabad, head of the AIPAC (American Israel Political Action Coalition) chapter, fraternity brother in AEPI, deputy chief of staff in Student Government, and worked in Senator Marco Rubio's office. When I had my latest monthly call with him, he was most excited for his last Knight-Thon (UCF's dance marathon). After that chat, I wanted to interview him for the blog to capture the zeitgeist of a senior's last dance marathon and learn more about this role as a Morale Captain.

(Image courtesy of Ben)

1. What is Knight-Thon?

Knight-Thon is a part of a great organization called Dance Marathon (DM). DM is at many schools in the country and is very prevalent at Florida public universities. At the UCF dance marathon, we raise funds for Arnold and Winnie Palmer Hospitals for children who would otherwise not afford medical care and medical supplies for the hospitals. Knight-Thon puts on events throughout the school year culminating in the spring semester event called Knight-Thon. Knight-Thon (before COVID-19) was a 20-hour dance marathon where students across different majors and interests came together to work towards a common goal. Main Event is where our participants learn about our impact via miracle children's stories. Miracle Children are children who were or are patients who received funds from our dance marathon.

(Image courtesy of Ben)

2. What is Morale and Main Event?

Morale is the spirit squad of Knight-Thon. You can see Moralers (people on the team) fundraising at UCF's different campuses and uplifting both participants and volunteers. Each year, Morale creates a five to eight-minute dance taught at Main Event. Main Event is the culmination of a year's fundraising efforts. Main Event occurs in the Spring Semester. Before Main Event, Knight-Thon hosts different events throughout the year like Moraleoween or Moralentines Day. Main Event is when students would enter the arena and stand for 20 hours. Participants learn about what their fundraising efforts are going towards as miracle children (children who directly benefited from Dance Marathon's efforts), and their families tell us their stories. Due to COVID, Knight-Thon has taken safety measures to ensure the safety of participants and volunteers. For the past two years, Knight-Thon's Main Events have occurred outdoors to ensure social distancing measures.

(Video courtesy of Ben)

3. Whats your Knight-Thon Story?

I became a part of Knight-Thon during my freshman year via my fraternity AEPi. Knight-Thon had a free sign-up day, and I enrolled that day. When I went to my first main event, I saw how you and Alyssa G. (my girl-big in Zeta Tau Alpha) were engaging with the student body. I knew that I wanted to join Morale afterward. Since my sophomore year, I have been a part of Morale. This year I serve as a Morale Captain. Here is the link to my donor drive to learn more about why I participate in Knight-Thon: https://events.dancemarathon.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=845036