What: Ball State Dance Marathon
When: 2 p.m. Feb. 20 - Feb. 21 2 a.m.
Where: Ball State's Field Sports Building located in the Jo Ann Gora Student Recreation and Wellness Center.
Donations can be made through the BSUDM website
As the fundraising numbers came in last year at the 2015 Ball State University Dance Marathon, Beka Lockwood watched anxiously. She and her entertainment committee, a small but dedicated group of students, had put in hard work, along with all the other volunteers, to make the fundraiser a success. When the announcement came through that the event had raised more than $500,000, Lockwood fell to the ground crying.
“That’s the moment I will literally never forget," she said. "I called my mom crying, I called my boyfriend crying — that’s the moment I’m looking forward to this year.”
This year's Dance Marathon is on Feb. 20 starting at 2 p.m.
Lockwood, a sophomore telecommunications major and Indianapolis native, has more invested in the charity Dance Marathon supports, Riley Hospital for Children, than most students: she’s giving back to the organization that has helped support and treat her for seven years.
When Lockwood was 13, a hard white lump appeared on her face. Concerned, her parents took her to the dermatologist, who then referred them to the rheumatology department at Riley Hospital for Children. They told her that she had morphea scleroderma, a rare autoimmune disease that attacks her skin cells.
Though the diagnosis was troubling and would require lengthy treatment, Lockwood said the support and kindness the Riley Hospital staff offered made all the difference.
“My nurses and doctors did a really good job of educating me and my parents about what it was, what was happening to me and immediately they got me on medicine to help stop it from spreading. My care at Riley has just been incredible," she said.
Her mother, Jill Lockwood, was especially grateful for the care Beka received at Riley.
“They’ve been wonderful; I couldn’t have asked for a better situation," Jill said. "They’ve treated us like family, made us feel comfortable. We’re very lucky to have it in our backyard.”
This is not to say that Beka's treatment was easy — she spent her teenage years on several different types of medications, including steroids and low dosages of chemo. Though her family and doctors were supportive, it was sometimes hard for Beka to feel like a normal teenager. Riley’s sense of community, however, helped remedy this too.
Riley Hospital offered free retreats for the teenage girls in the rheumatology department, where patients could get together and share their experiences.
“We were just able to connect with girls that also had these rare diseases and [who were] living this different kind of life," she said. "It’s just great that Riley was able to provide that for me, because for a while I felt alone, like, ‘What is going on with my body?’ It made me feel more at home."
Beka added she still keeps in touch with the girls — they have a group chat together and are always communicating back and forth about their lives.
As Beka got older, she learned about Dance Marathon, a fundraiser that supports Riley Hospital for Children, and knew she had to get involved. She attended her high school’s Dance Marathon all four years, but was not able to get involved with a committee until she came to Ball State. Lockwood was on the entertainment committee last year and is currently the philanthropy chair of the greek recruitment committee.
When asked about why she wanted to become involved with Dance Marathon, Beka's face lit up.
“I knew as soon as I heard of what Dance Marathon was I needed to give back to this hospital, I needed to give back because they’ve done so much for me and so many of my friends and siblings and people that I know," she said. "I just wanted to be able to show my passion about Riley to others and help spark their passion with it too."
Jill is happy about her daughter's passion and involvement with Dance Marathon.
“We’re really proud of her; it’s had a big impact on her," Jill said. "Being a Riley kid and then being able to turn around and give back, that’s really neat.”
As the president of Pi Beta Phi, Beka is well positioned to help Riley in her current position on the greek recruitment committee. The support of the greek community is vital to the success of Dance Marathon.
Morgan Polizzi, director of greek recruitment, said greek students make up more than half of dancer participants alone at this year’s BSUDM, and this does not include the greek students who participate on committees and the executive board.
Lockwood agrees that the greek community plays a large part in Dance Marathon's success.
“The greek community is one of our biggest supporters of Dance Marathon, so we love to see that relationship grow,” Beka said.
Today, Beka is done with medication and recently had her second-to-last appointment at Riley before she graduates from the program and switches to an adult rheumatology department elsewhere.
“It kind of makes me sad, but the support and care they’ve given me throughout this journey has just been great," Beka said. "I really don’t want to go anywhere else. It’s not, ‘Let’s get you better and get you out of here,’ it’s, ‘Let’s build a relationship. We’re taking care of you instead of just healing you.'"
As her time as a patient at Riley comes to a close, Beka is looking forward to the 2016 Dance Marathon taking place Feb. 20, where she will dance and spend time with her Riley kid, Aylor. She plans to stay connected to Riley beyond Dance Marathon by becoming involved in the BSUDM alumni club after graduation.
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