Purdue University Dance Marathon

Purdue University Dance Marathon PUDM raises money year-round for Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis and is the largest student-run philanthropic organization on Purdue's campus.

Purdue University Dance Marathon was established in 2005 and is now in its 13th year & 14th marathon. Over the years, PUDM has raised over 5.5 million dollars for the kids and families at Riley Hospital for Children. PUDM is the largest annual donor to pediatric cancer research at the Herman B. Wells Center at Riley & annually donates $100,000 to the Child Life Program. With 600+ Boilermakers invo

lved on PUDM committees, we are the largest student-run philanthropic organization at Purdue. In the fall, PUDM hosts an 18 hour event with over 2,000 in attendance to celebrate & fundraise for the kids & families at Riley. The marathon could not take place without the help of the Purdue and West Lafayette/Lafayette communities. We are lucky enough to work with local businesses, restaurants, prominent community figures, athletic teams, and a variety of bands to aid with the marketing, fundraising, and entertainment during the marathon. Most importantly, PUDM has developed close and personal relationships with multiple Riley children and families. They are the heart, soul, and inspiration for the year-round fundraising and planning of the marathon. PUDM tries to give more than just money to the hospital; we try to also provide a wonderful and special experience for our Riley kids. The marathon is a celebration of life, hope, love, and dreaming BIG! In 2012, PUDM raised $528,654.67 for the kids! A patient room in the new Cancer Center at Riley Hospital is named after PUDM. It’s an incredible honor and gives all involved with PUDM even more motivation to do all we can "For The Kids".

Help me Celebrate Jayzen, as our Riley Kid of the Week! When Jayzen was young, doctors discovered that the white matter ...
06/11/2026

Help me Celebrate Jayzen, as our Riley Kid of the Week! When Jayzen was young, doctors discovered that the white matter in his brain was not fully developed, and Riley specialists were unsure if he would ever walk. Through years of therapy, determination, and hard work, Jayzen defied the odds. Today, he runs, plays sports, and continues to amaze everyone around him.
Along his journey, Jayzen has also faced severe anxiety, ADHD, and most recently, a diagnosis of Tourette Syndrome. Through every challenge, he has shown incredible resilience, strength, and courage.

Lets celebrate McClain, Our Riley Kid of the Week! His journey began on June 12, 2009, when McClain, was diagnosed with ...
06/04/2026

Lets celebrate McClain, Our Riley Kid of the Week! His journey began on June 12, 2009, when McClain, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) at Riley Hospital. Instead of celebrating his arrival, his family was learning how to navigate a life-changing diagnosis. The Riley pulmonary team provided incredible support, helping them face their new reality with knowledge, compassion, and hope.
McClain was hospitalized twice within his first three months of life, and despite following every treatment plan, he struggled to breathe normally. Then Riley offered an opportunity to participate in a clinical trial studying inhaled hypertonic saline for young children with CF. The results were life-changing. For the first time, they watched their son breathe normally.
Today, McClain is an active child who continues to thrive thanks to the exceptional care and groundbreaking research at Riley. He has benefited from advances in CF treatment and has even been evaluated for additional clinical trials targeting the disease at the cellular level.

Join us in honoring our dancing in our heart of the month Maddy Justice!Here’s Maddy’s story: Madeline “Maddy” Justice w...
06/01/2026

Join us in honoring our dancing in our heart of the month Maddy Justice!

Here’s Maddy’s story: Madeline “Maddy” Justice was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) when she was 13 years old. She immediately started her initial treatments and was a match with her sister to receive a bone marrow transplant. However, after a few months Maddy relapsed and there was no protocol of treatment for relapsed AML. During Maddy’s fight with cancer, she endured 11 rounds of chemotherapy, radiation, two bone marrow transplants and a multitude of other procedures and painful side effects. At 15 years old, Maddy lost her battle with AML.
Maddy remained positive through it all and became an inspiration to countless people.

Join us in honoring our legacy of the month David Feltner!Here’s David’s story: David was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcom...
06/01/2026

Join us in honoring our legacy of the month David Feltner!

Here’s David’s story: David was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma in 2007. He battled through four relapsed while he was a student at Purdue. When he was receiving treatment, he helped younger kids also going through cancer treatment. David underwent chemotherapy, which caused his to lose his hair and he asked his brothers of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity to shave his head. To show their support, the brothers of Phi Kappa Phi shaved their heads as well.
David never let his cancer define who he was. David never lost his spirit, and he has inspired us all to do great things.

Lets Celebrate Aven, Our RIley Kid of the Week! After several days of illness, high fevers, and worsening symptoms despi...
05/28/2026

Lets Celebrate Aven, Our RIley Kid of the Week! After several days of illness, high fevers, and worsening symptoms despite nearly a week of antibiotics for recurrent strep throat, Aven began losing the ability to walk. They were initially told she likely had a virus, but received no explanation for why she could no longer support her own body weight.
At Riley, her mom advocated for additional labs to rule out complications from her frequent strep infections. While the labs showed no strep-related complications, they did reveal viral myositis and helped confirm that Aven had Influenza B. Viral myositis causes inflammation and breakdown of the leg muscles, making walking painful and sometimes impossible for children. Thankfully, Aven recovered without long-term complications. Her family is grateful the Riley team listened to our concerns and helped us find answers.

Let’s Celebrate Isabella, Our Riley Kid of the Week! Isabella was diagnosed at 8 years old with growth hormone deficienc...
05/21/2026

Let’s Celebrate Isabella, Our Riley Kid of the Week! Isabella was diagnosed at 8 years old with growth hormone deficiency at Lurie Children’s hospital. From there she was under Lurie’s care for 5 years for her treatment of GHD. Lurie’s doctors and nurses changed her life, by finding out her diagnosis and supporting her through my treatment. She is currently in Purdue’s nursing and this experience fuels my passion to become a pediatric nurse one day! She is also a Family Captain for Riley Relations and we are so happy she is a part of our PUDM family!

As we head into summer here’s some inspiration from some of our members. Have an amazing summer!
05/13/2026

As we head into summer here’s some inspiration from some of our members. Have an amazing summer!

Check out Purdue Baseball’s online auction by scanning the QR code and bid on a batting practice jersey! Then join us th...
05/02/2026

Check out Purdue Baseball’s online auction by scanning the QR code and bid on a batting practice jersey! Then join us this Sunday May 3rd at 1 PM to cheer on the baseball team and watch the kids run the bases!

Our donors have such a huge impact on our organization and every dollar that’s donated makes a difference. Thank you to ...
04/30/2026

Our donors have such a huge impact on our organization and every dollar that’s donated makes a difference. Thank you to everyone who donated!

Let’s celebrate our Riley Kid of the Week, Bryson!Bryson Faus was born on March 5th, 2013 in Fort Wayne and was life-lin...
04/30/2026

Let’s celebrate our Riley Kid of the Week, Bryson!

Bryson Faus was born on March 5th, 2013 in Fort Wayne and was life-lined by helicopter to Riley the next day with four congenital heart defects as well as some kidney problems. When he was 5 days old he had his first open-heart surgery to repair two of his defects. Since then he has had another open-heart surgery, two heart caths, two general surgeries, and four kidney surgeries. In all, he has spent roughly 4.5 months at Riley. Although Bryson has been through more in his 17 short months than most people have to endure in their entire life, he is still the happiest, silliest, sweetest, most energetic little guy I have ever known. He is now g-tube free, only on two heart medications and a prophylactic antibiotic to protect against UTIs, completely off oxygen and no longer requires a heart monitor.

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Stewart Center Box 719, 128 Memorial Drive
West Lafayette, IN
47907

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