Lauren Richards is living, breathing THON

Photo submitted by Lauren Richards.

This week I interviewed Lauren Richards to learn about her experience with THON.

Choosing Lauren to talk to was no mistake. She is Penn State New Kensington’s THON chair, and more than one person has described her as “crazy” about THON.

Hopefully her experiences will encourage others to get involved, too.

On her favorite THON moment: “This year I went to THON's Family Carnival. There was a really little kid with glasses who was scared of Andrew Holodnik, one of our THON members, because Andrew was dressed up as a knight. He was just so shy, but he had a lot of fun. I just want to help kids like him.”

On learning about THON: “I learned about THON in my sophomore year. I saw my friend Nicki Thoma had signed up for it at club rush, so I did, too.”

On her first THON meeting: “I didn’t know what THON was, so I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know how passionate everyone was about it, because I thought we just raised money. But I was excited to see how everyone’s hearts were in it and how we do so much more than just raise money.”

On getting more students involved in THON: “If someone’s not involved in THON, I’d tell them to just come to one meeting, and you can decide if you want come back or not. That’s how I got hooked onto THON. We also have to convey it more at orientation. A lot of freshmen don’t know about THON, or they don’t know people in THON. I think if we get to them at orientation and really tell them about it they’ll be interested, because this is a great experience.”

On becoming THON chair 11 months ago: “It’s been one of the best experiences of my life. They were looking for new people to do it last year, and I was a fresh face to them. One day I walked into the Student Life office, and they told me I could do great. I wanted to do it, but I also knew that if I did it I wouldn’t be able to be a dancer at this year’s THON weekend. I was also worried about not getting the position, but I went for it.”

On spending more time on THON than school: “I spend at least three to four hours a day on THON during the week. On weekends it is 10 hours a day if there are fundraisers. I’ve been living and breathing it since I became THON chair. I don’t do a lot of school work outside of school.”

On Penn State New Kensington’s $60,000 goal: “I really want it to be reached. I think we can raise $60,000 with the right tools. Unfortunately, this year a lot has gone against us like a canning weekend being canceled, but that doesn’t stop us. We really, really want to do it.”

On what THON means to her: “THON means selflessness. Students don’t do it because they have to, but they do it because they want to. That’s the most selfless act anyone can offer.”