Kennett High School second mini-THON set

KENNETT SQUARE >> Approximately 300 Kennett High School students will remain on their feet from 8 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday morning for Mini-THON, an event that will raise money for the Four Diamonds Fund to benefit pediatric cancer research and families whose children are battling the disease.

Through a variety of events, raffles, generous corporate contributions, and donations, students have already raised an impressive $25,000 toward the second-year fundraising goal of $65,000.

Modeled after Penn State’s Dance Marathon (THON), Kennett High School’s Mini-THON featured 10 hours packed with fun activities, music, and food for participants.

Faculty advisors for the event are Tom Brientnall, social studies teacher; Lisa Teixeira, KHS librarian and Humanitarian Club moderator; and Erin McDonnell-Jones, English teacher. Both McDonnell-Jones and Brientnall are Penn State graduates and former THON participants. Student organizers are led by senior event chair Austin Maxwell, along with junior co-chairs Erin Duffy and Anna Wilson, and Humanitarian Club seniors Molly Adelman, Michael Bellino, and Jackie Tucker.

This year, a community open house will be added to the evening’s schedule.

For a $5 donation, members of the Kennett community will be invited to Reynolds Gymnasium from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday for a sneak peek at the Mini-THON event. Faculty and student organizers are excited to welcome everyone to share in the fun and support a very worthy cause.

Event chair Austin Maxwell said, “Cancer kills more children in the U.S. than any other disease.

And, only 4 percent of cancer research dollars go toward the study of childhood cancers. So, here at Kennett, we’re teaming up to help families with children battling the disease, and we’d love the support of the entire Kennett community in our fight.”