From noon to midnight, participants stayed on their feet — sweating, singing and sending countless emails. The teams of students competed to raise awareness and funding for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund. On Saturday, March 22, students gathered in the Sutton Wellbeing Center for Wake Forest’s 20th annual “Wake ‘N Shake” dance marathon. By the end of the night, they had raised a total of $322,975.
Junior Grayson Weavil, a member of the corporate sponsorship executive team, expressed her excitement and pride for the success of this year’s fundraising event.
“The outcomes of the event absolutely exceeded our expectations,” Weavil said. “We raised over 130K in a single day. This was double last year’s amount and we were all absolutely speechless.”
The Piccolo Fund promotes research into improved treatments against cancer at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist and several other medical institutions in memory of Brian Piccolo. Piccolo, a Wake Forest alumnus and legendary football player, died of embryonal cell carcinoma at age 26 in 1970.
Ten years later, Wake Forest students founded the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund and, in decades since, have continued to honor Piccolo’s legacy through several philanthropic avenues, including Wake ‘N Shake. Since its inception in 2006, the energetic fundraiser has been organized entirely by students and has grown into one of the most beloved campus events.
Wake ‘N Shake has historically relied on the fundraising efforts of student organizations. Excluding the Wake ‘N Shake Executive Board, the teams that raised the most funds include the Bayer-Nops team and Delta Zeta sorority, each collecting close to $38,000. Some individual students also raised several thousand dollars.
Freshman Annabelle Grenzer stayed the entire event with the Alpha Delta Pi sorority team. While she was excited to try out the various activities and amenities at the event, Grenzer most appreciated the heartwarming community spirit at Wake ‘N Shake.
“You see how much Wake Forest students really care about getting together and participating in these fun things that go toward good causes,” Grenzer said. “It shows that a lot of kids are good-natured and good-spirited. They put together fun events that we care about and everyone enjoys.”
This year’s Wake ‘N Shake theme was titled “Fuel the Fight for a Cure.” The Sutton Center was filled with race-car-inspired decorations, such as checkered pennants, mock roads on the floor, and signs that read “drive out cancer” and “rev up for a cure.” At the back of the gym, students wrote the names of their loved ones who have been affected by cancer on colorful paint sample chips and attached the names to a wall labelled “Who are you dancing for?”
Freshman Juliet Sanchez arrived at 6:00 pm with the Delta Delta Delta sorority team. She was motivated to dance because several of her grandparents and family friends have dealt with cancer. Sanchez was encouraged by the number of students who showed up to support the cause.
“It’s very lively with a lot of people, which is nice to see,” Sanchez said. “It’s one of the few events that all of the Wake Forest community gathers for.”
Students enjoyed dances led by the morale team, “Just Dance” videos projected on the big screen and live performances from bands – The Barons, July Turner and Chicken Scratch – as well as from campus a cappella groups – Demon Divas and MeloDeacs. Wake N’ Shake champions Junius Nottingham, Marybeth Hays, Stacey Panchyshyn, Jordan Kosoy and Henry Fenollosa also shared their personal experiences with cancer.
The level of enthusiasm in the gym reached a new peak as Chicken Scratch came to the stage, and Sanchez laughed as a wave of sound swept across the room.
“Very high energy and high intensity. Staying hydrated and taking breaks to keep the energy up is important,” Sanchez said.
The Wake ‘N Shake Executive Team hopes that this event will continue to grow every year.
“Most of all, I hope that Wake ’N Shake becomes an even more prominent symbol of Wake Forest’s commitment to Pro Humanitiate,” Weavil said. “I hope that we can continue to put Brian Piccolo and his legacy at the forefront of the event and ensure people know his story.”
