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Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance Electrifies Panther Hall, Raises Funds for Pediatric Brain Research

This article was written by Jacqueline Erler, Class of 2018.
On April 8, 2016, heaps of students, teachers and dancers gathered at Ranney to participate in a three-hour charity dance to raise money for pediatric brain tumor research. Bursting with pink lights, delicious food and thrilling performances, Panther Hall was a sight to see as it was transformed into an impressive dance floor, accompanied by lively dancers who took part in supporting an important cause.

Sophomores Charlotte Kaye and Sarah Killian have worked diligently since the beginning of the school year to plan an event in support of a charity which holds a special meaning for both of them. After surviving a pediatric brain tumor herself as a young child, Charlotte wanted to raise awareness for the treatment of this disease in her teenage years. With the help of her best friend, this dynamic duo planned Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance to raise money for the Kortney Rose Foundation, a charity aimed at raising funds to find better treatments and ultimately a cure for pediatric brain tumors.

Sarah explains the goals for the charity event: “Being a part of Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance is such a rewarding experience because it raises money and awareness for something that severely impacted a member of the Ranney community, while also being a good time for everyone involved.”

With the assistance of a lively and creative committee, supervised by Upper School Arts Teacher Mr. Sullivan, Charlotte and Sarah flawlessly arranged this Friday night dance event. Kicking off at 7 o’clock, the founder of the Kortney Rose Foundation, Kristen Gillette, spoke to the dancers about her personal experiences and thanked them for their spirited participation in her fundraising efforts. After the music began, the dedicated dancers did not withdraw from the dance floor until the end of the night. Several performances punctuated the dancing periods for water and snack breaks. Sarah performed an original song on the acoustic guitar, “Music Up, Hair Down” and the excitement continued as Dance Plus, Charlotte’s dance team, surprised the crowd with a flash mob performance of “Shut Up and Dance.”

Said Ms. Gillette: "The Kortney Rose Foundation is extremely grateful to Charlotte Kaye and her committee who did a fantastic job of planning and implementing a very successful first Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance event at Ranney School. While we appreciate when anyone supports our foundation, it is even more poignant when the person organizing the event has directly been affected by a brain tumor. We are very impressed with Charlotte and her committee and cannot thank everyone enough for Helping to Get Brain Tumors Off Kids’ Minds."

The night came to a perfect close as raffle prizes were called and distributed to their respective winners, contributing to the zealous atmosphere. A total of $6,500 was raised to help find better treatments for pediatric brain tumors, an enormously impressive success for the debut year of Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance.

Reflecting on the successful evening, Charlotte explained, “I can speak from personal experience when I say that something as important as this never leaves you. The outcome was more than I could have ever imagined, and I hope that this event will continue to raise awareness around the Ranney community in the future.”

Planning for the 2017 Charlotte’s Dance for a Chance is already underway! We hope to see you all next year for an even more fantastic and successful night!
 
Student Committee Members included:
Taylor Cruz ’17
Jasmin Davé ’ 18
Lily Elkwood ’18
Jacqueline Erler ’18
Abigail Granata ’18
Brooke Nadler ’18
Jillian Ross ’17
 
Special thanks to faculty and parents who helped with the event!

See The Two River Times' coverage of the event herein.

See Community Magazine's coverage.
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Ranney School

235 Hope Road
Tinton Falls, NJ 07724
Tel. 732.542.4777
Our mission is to know and value every child, nurturing intellectual curiosity and confidence, and inspiring students to lead honorably, think creatively, and contribute meaningfully to society. 

We envision Ranney School as a nurturing learning community, in which families, faculty, alumni, and all of Ranney’s constituents collaborate to know and value every child, foster individual talents, sustain powerful connections between children and adults, and graduate resilient, globally-minded citizens.