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Reflections on Our 24-Hour Sponsored Dance-a-thon
- Muirhead Outreach Project
- 20 hours ago
- 6 min read
Steps: 215,797
Songs: 360
Visitors: 60
Everything Muirhead does is underpinned by eight values. We talk about them a lot, but in case you aren’t familiar with them, they are:
Inclusion, Understanding, Connection, Sustainability, Community, Transparency, Safety and Nurture.
Unlike in some organisations, these aren’t simply words displayed on our website. They help us make sure the work we are doing remains true to who we are.
When I started planning the Dance-a-thon around a year ago, I wrote a proposal explaining how the event would reflect some of these values. Dancing is good for you, so anyone joining us would hopefully feel nurtured. We would invite local dance groups, build new relationships and strengthen existing connections.
I can tell you now that I completely underestimated the impact those 24 hours would have on us and on the people who joined us.
In the run-up to the event, I started to feel quite anxious.
Would enough people come along? Was I physically capable of completing it? Would Shannon and I fight over the playlists?
Then, suddenly, it was 12 noon and Sophie Ellis-Bextor was singing about a murder on the dance floor. Thankfully, there wasn’t one.
Within 20 minutes, the small hall we were dancing in had reached 24 degrees, and it quickly became clear that our freshly washed hair was not going to stay fresh for long.
The staff team were the first to join us, with Janine, our Charity Development Manager; Kris and Carolann, our Support Workers; and Ainsley, our Senior Support Worker, bopping along to some of the classics.
Ultimately, we were raising money to help this team continue doing the work they do. Although they were able to join us for a song or two, their priority was checking in with the families they support before the weekend began.
Disney Divas
Disney Divas was where the fun really began and the first time the dance floor was completely full.
It was lovely to see children dancing at that wonderful age before self-consciousness kicks in, when they are simply fun, free and completely committed to every move. Who knew the Hokey Cokey would be such a floor filler?
The children also enjoyed taking breaks in our new sensory room, watching the lights and dancing on one of the sensory mats.
Our next visitor was Vicki from Yvonne Gray School of Dance, who came along to teach us a street dance routine. We were very grateful that some of the Disney Divas and their mums stayed to join in.
Firstly, huge respect to Vicki for being able to choreograph an entire dance. Secondly, apologies that we needed so many repetitions that we didn’t actually make it to the end of it!
There was no afternoon lull. We moved straight from street dancing into the afternoon rave, where families arrived with glow sticks and raised the energy all over again.
This was also the point when Shannon overtook me in the step count, largely because she appeared to take at least three steps for every one of mine.
The hour was topped off by a raving unicorn making a guest appearance, as all respectable charity events should be.
Things settled down slightly after that, and Shannon and I danced our way through a couple of decades, deciding that the fashion from the 1980s was the best so far. This was possibly the first sign that tiredness was affecting our judgement.
Line Dancing and Soul Moves
At 7pm, Lorraine from Ranch Dance Fife joined us to give line dancing a go.
We were privileged enough to have Linda, our Administrator, come out of line-dancing retirement and perform the grapevine for the first time in more than 20 years.
Unfortunately, she had chosen to stand behind me, and I can be a little… distracting at times.
We chose Shania Twain for our live video and, by the end, I think we had just about got the hang of it. It was brilliant fun, and I would highly recommend getting along to Ranch Dance Fife’s classes in Kirkcaldy on a Monday evening.
Next, it was time for Shannon to take a well-earned comfort break while my family and I practised our soul moves, had a singalong and caught up.
Shannon then returned for her solo hour while I carb-loaded on what genuinely felt like the best pizza I had ever eaten.
The Night Shift
Our support troops arrived for the 90s hour at 11pm, and we relived our youth with the Spice Girls, B*Witched, the Vengaboys and more.
The energy our supporters brought over the next couple of hours was incredible and exactly what we needed. We laughed, danced and sang our hearts out.
A 24-hour karaoke event has already been suggested and firmly declined.
At 1am, Kyle from Haud Yer Weesht Silent Disco arrived. He had already been at a wedding, was understandably tired and had no idea what he was walking into.
Despite this, he gave us one of our finest hours.
Some of the group had never experienced a silent disco before. If our questionable dance moves didn’t offend Kyle, our out-of-key singing certainly did. I believe the word he used was “hellish”.
From 2am, the energy began to drop, and we spent some time attempting to learn TikTok dance challenges to keep ourselves awake.
The emphasis here is very much on the word “attempting”.
For me, the period between 5am and 8am was the biggest mental struggle.
Physically, my body was still doing surprisingly well, but we had moved on to lower-energy music. At one point, I was wrapped in a blanket, slowly shuffling around the dance floor to Stevie Nicks.
With both Shannon and me beginning to feel the strain, and no more supporters expected until 11am, we needed a miracle to get us through the next few hours.
That miracle arrived at 8am in the shape of Janine, carrying a McDonald’s breakfast and arriving just in time for our songs from musicals and films hour.
Janine’s energy and song requests were exactly what we needed.
Pat Benatar is now my new favourite.
The Final Hour
Aviation Eclipse Cheer and Tumble then arrived to take us towards the finish line.
Cheerleading is not as easy as it looks. After 23 hours of dancing, Shannon and I did not possess the flexibility required for some of the moves - assuming we ever had it in the first place.
However, we gave it our best shot, and the final hour flew by.
For the last song, we were joined by family, friends and more of the staff team, who came onto the dance floor with us for Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen.
There could not have been a more appropriate final song.
What I Learned
Here is what I learned, or was reminded of, during our 24 hours of dancing.
Energy is contagious.
When our energy dropped, it often took just one upbeat person to arrive, share their energy with us and help us through another hour.
Dancing is good for you.
More than one person left after their hour saying how good they felt and how much they had enjoyed the boost it gave them.
When you are struggling, put on some of your favourite music and move your body. Your dancing doesn’t have to be good. Ours certainly wasn’t. It probably won’t take long before you begin to feel a shift in your mood.
Your body is capable of more than you think.
I don’t look after mine particularly well, and somehow it still carried me through the full 24 hours.
Coming Back to Our Values
Connection
We are incredibly grateful for the connections we already had with those who supported us throughout the event, as well as the new connections we made because of it.
Community
The number of people who showed up for us demonstrated that we are building a supportive community that extends well beyond the walls of our office.
The money raised will allow us to continue growing this community, including supporting parents through our Connected Parenting Programme and the wider support we provide.
Nurture
We looked after our bodies throughout the event. Between the dancing, laughter, food and moments of complete delirium, our souls were most definitely nurtured too.
Those 24 hours will stay with me for a very long time.
I like to think that, many years from now, I will hear one of the 360 songs we played and immediately picture Shannon shuffling around the dance floor.
I’ll laugh to myself and remember the time we thought it would be a good idea to dance for 24 hours.
And despite everything, it really was.
We are very close to our £1000 target!
You can see all the videos from the event here: Muirhead Outreach Project | Facebook