Marissa Penrod took to the Dance Marathon stage as the dancers entered their tenth block Saturday night, encouraging them to push through to the end and reminding them of the impact their thirty hours will have on her son and all children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Penrod began her speech to more than a thousand DM participants with gratitude, extending thanks to the hero families that offered their support and stories throughout DM, as well as current and former Wildcats, Team Joseph advisory board member Bryan Tolles and Team Joseph DM liaison Peter Ulrich.
Penrod also thanked the Dance Marathon Executive Committee for choosing Team Joseph as the primary beneficiary for Dance Marathon 2014 before shifting her focus to the reason for the thirty hours spent dancing on swollen feet and little sleep.
“Ever since [Joseph’s] diagnosis, I’ve had a new routine,” Penrod told the packed tent, as dancers put their arms around each other and listened intently. “I would go into his room and put my hands on his legs and pray for a miracle, pray for a solution. But the miracle has been here all along… the miracle is Joseph.”
Joseph Penrod has been battling Duchenne muscular dystrophy since his diagnosis at age five, prompting his mother to found Team Joseph. According to his mom, the 10-year-old boy in the 5th grade, Joseph is a singer, a card player, aspiring sports broadcaster and the driving force behind Dance Marathon 2014.
“I was in tears,” said Weinberg junior Evelyn Atwater. “It’s easy to forget that we give so much hope. When we think about that, our tired feet seem like nothing at all.”
Dancers held each other as they listened to Penrod speak about her son’s journey and their family's fight against Duchenne, as well as her own hopes and dreams for the future that DM has allowed her to envision.
“Dance Marathon goes beyond the 30 hours,” Penrod told dancers as she choked back tears. “The impact of what you’re doing will carry on infinitely. It’s not just in the numbers that show up on a board; this is about your heart and spirit and soul, and the wind that you put in the sails of Team Joseph.”
Penrod’s message resonated with dancers as they returned to dancing with a renewed vigor following her speech.
“I truly believe that what we’re doing here will affect current and future generations of kids with Duchenne,” Weinberg sophomore David Rice said. “She’s completely right that it’s not all about the money, but it’s about the spirit generated in the tent that puts life into our mission.”
To end her speech, Penrod encouraged dancers to stop thinking about money, committee meetings and Duchenne, and focus rather on celebrating their accomplishments and all they’ve given to Team Joseph.
“For these next two hours, we’re going to pretend we’re not tired, act like our feet don’t hurt, pretend it’s not this smelly in tent,” Penrod said to dancers’ laughs. “For the next two hours, we’re just going to celebrate everything you’ve done.”