Seashells, sequins and scrubs sparkled across the crowd at the Dance Marathon. 

The Pediatric AIDS Coalition at UCLA kicked off its annual Dance Marathon at 2 p.m. Saturday in the Ackerman Grand Ballroom. With over 300 entrants and about 22 teams, the event is a 10-hour stand against HIV and AIDS, said Caroline Meyers, the president of the coalition.

“It’s a great way to do something that’s super fun and also educational and philanthropic,” Meyers said. “It’s a long-standing UCLA tradition at this point, so it’s important for students to get involved.” 

Meyers, a fourth-year public affairs student, added that the Dance Marathon showcases student performers and offers games to attendees – proceeds of which go directly toward the event’s beneficiaries, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, the Laurel Foundation and the UCLA AIDS Institute. The event is broken down into four theme shifts, she said, where dancers change costumes. The first shift was first aid versus mermaid, she added.

Upon arrival, tables of information booths displaying trifolds on HIV research and color-sorted bandanas greeted attendees. A horizontal rainbow of balloons hung above a poster with capital letters asking, “Why are you here?” Event color captains wore vivid hues, corresponding to their team, which they will lead through the event’s color wars. 

After a greeting from Meyers, the crowd cheered on the color captains, who introduced themselves on stage, and the event’s first morale dance began.  

A routine choreographed to “Cheap Thrills” by Sia, the morale dance is conducted every hour on the hour, Meyers said. She added that the dance, which attendees learn together, is one of the aspects of the event she most looks forward to – a way to maintain spirits as people get tired throughout the 10 hours.

For Hanna Masri, PAC’s executive director of outreach, the most exciting part of the event is bonding with the children from the Laurel Foundation – an organization that offers mental health support and education to support vulnerable youth. The fourth-year neuroscience student added that opportunities such as dancing or playing cornhole with these children reminds her exactly who the organization is working to support.

“Dance Marathon and PAC has shown me that as hopeless as things are or might feel, you can make a big difference just by being here, by supporting, by being part of the community,” Masri said.

Shirin Dunker, the organization’s executive director of logistics, said she attended the Dance Marathon for the first time before she even started at UCLA. Dunker, a fourth-year molecular, cell and developmental biology student, said she joined PAC during her first year, knowing the significance of the event to the campus community but little about the organization itself.

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Since becoming a part of PAC, she added that her knowledge about HIV and AIDS has grown. Dunker said she hopes the event inspires students to take action within their own communities.

“The energy is booming,” Dunker said. “When you walk through the doors, you see colors. You hear bands. And the whole point of today is to keep energy up and advocate and … create awareness around this issue.”

Because of UCLA’s size, it can feel hard to get everyone to join in a common cause, said Allyson Hiser, a fourth-year chemical engineering student who attended the events. The Dance Marathon is one of the biggest opportunities for that, Hiser added. She said even if attendees do not know those dancing around them, the event is especially valuable as a way to see people supporting something together.

UCLA is composed of down-to-earth people who want to support communities in times of need, Hiser said.

“Outside of PAC, you don’t hear a lot about any support for kids with AIDS,” she said. “It’s important to really make sure we still keep talking about it and still support them, so they know that they’re not alone.” 

The Dance Marathon started in 2002, Meyers said in her opening speech. She added that when the Dance Marathon first began, roughly 1,700 children were born HIV-positive every day. Meyers said while the number today is around 120, PAC’s goal is to move that number to zero.

Misunderstandings surrounding HIV and AIDS perpetuate stigma, Dunker said. She added that this stigma motivates PAC’s efforts to raise money for treatment and educate the public.

“This cause has the power to unite,” Dunker said. “Everyone coming into DM (Dance Marathon) today, we all may be doing different things. It’s week nine, week 10. But today is about the Pediatric Aids Coalition, this cause. I hope everyone walks out feeling united together.”