Meet the Dancer Relations Team
As the largest student-run organization on campus, DM at FSU prides ourselves on our thousands of annual participants. This week, we meet Dancer Relations: the team that cultivates the "who" in what we do.
AZIA WILLIAMS, DANCER RELATIONS DIRECTOR
What is your role in Dance Marathon 2019?
This year, I have the honor of serving as the Dancer Relations Director. I oversee all Membership, Morale, Recruitment, and Outreach efforts to make sure that every person can find a way into this cause; that can mean anything from becoming a dancer, to volunteering, to being the delegate for an external organization. Over the course of the year, I help bring things like Dancer Registration and Volunteer Recruitment from concept to creation.
What is your favorite DM memory?
Ideally, I would be able to pick a different memory from every month since I signed up to be a volunteer during my sophomore year, but I’ll spare you in the interest of time and space. My all-time favorite moment was during last year’s Marathon weekend when all of CORE hit Comma Club. I wish I could go back to that moment every day because there’s nothing quite like seeing the collective impact of your efforts. The 60+ of us had grown to be incredibly close, and we stood at the gong basking in the glory of that moment together. I found myself surrounded by some of my best friends and the hardest workers I’ve ever known and I literally could not stop crying.
What is your goal/what do you hope to gain from DM this year?
I want to look back and know that I was the best version of myself. Not just as a leader and a fundraiser, but also as a friend. I want to do something that 4-year-old Azia and sophomore year Azia, and all the other past versions of myself would be proud of. Looking back, I could’ve never imagined that I’d be where I am now, but I’m here and it’s going to be the best year ever!
As Dancer Relations Director, how do you plan to impart the message of Dance Marathon to those involved?
I say this all the time, but when I look out into the crowd during Total Reveal, I want to see a group of students that’s just as diverse and widespread as our campus community. In order to get to that place, I think that it’s important to stress that there are various avenues for involvement within Dance Marathon at FSU. You can get involved through an organization or on your own, as a freshman or as a first year law student. With that in mind, I think that it’s important that we help people realize how they can connect to the cause, and show people the full line of things that we’re doing and ways that we’re helping. No one path is better or proper, as long as you’re with us during that first week in March feeling the magic of the Marathon.
MAKALA PEIRCE, OUTREACH CHAIR
What is your role in Dance Marathon 2019?
I am the Outreach Chair for Dance Marathon at Florida State University 2019! Within this position, I have the opportunity to work with both our Alumni team as well as our newly added, InspiratioNOLE Leaders program. Through these two programs, it is my job to connect those who are beginning their journey with DM as well as reconnecting those who have graduated and aspire to continue to be For The Kids.
What is your favorite DM memory?
Throughout my two years in DM, my favorite memory comes from my first trip to tour UF Health Shands Children's Hospital in Gainesville. During this tour, I began to feel the impact that our organization makes on the lives of so many and how my efforts were going towards making a difference each and every day. I walked around with my assigned group and had the urge to look above me, it was then that I saw the most rewarding part of that tour: the tiles. Each child that stays at Shands has the opportunity to design and create their very own tile and leave their legacy within the walls of the hospital. As we walked through the halls, I saw multiple Dance Marathon tiles as well as FSU tiles. It was then that I truly realized that these children are not just my heroes, but we are theirs...and to me, that is something pretty special about what we do.
What is your goal/what do you hope to gain from DM this year?
My goal is to help others find or rediscover their why. Whether this be for a freshman who has never heard of DM nor a why or for an alumni who has lost touch with why they began their journey with our organization. In all of the hustle that goes on throughout the year, we find ourselves losing sight of the most important center of our cause...our whys. This organization is unique in that every person who is involved has their own personal reasons for why they stand and fight for our miracle children and their families. It is my hope that through this role, I am able to guide others in finding or remembering how extraordinary this organization is and the weight at which it holds in the lives of so many.
How do you plan to cultivate alumni and INL participation this year?
As both programs have grown exponentially in the past year, it is my plan to continue this by expanding our Alumni database and building upon the starting structure of our InspiratioNOLE Leaders program. With Alumni, we are planning more Alumni specific events as well as tangibles in order to gain more participation throughout the year and into the Marathon itself. Specifically, this will be better achieved with our new City Coordinator positions throughout each region to coordinate events for highly Alumni populated areas. These coordinators will work alongside our Alumni Representatives for each region to better facilitate personal relationships and growth for our Alumni program. Our InspiratioNOLEs will also be participating more throughout the year, as we will be doing a mentor program where each INL will have the opportunity to shadow a specific position within our Internal team and have an up-close look into the work behind the scenes. In addition, these freshmen will be emerged into all things DM and learn all of the important details about DM at FSU.
ROBERT RIVERA, MORALE CHAIR
What is your role in Dance Marathon 2019?
I serve as the Morale Chair for Dance Marathon 2019. I oversee the Morale Program as a whole, which is one of Dance Marathon's Captain programs. I lead the leadership program that each Morale Captain must go through. My main job is to ensure that the student body is having a positive experience with Dance Marathon. Through our program, we are also planning ways to engage our external participants in creative and unique ways. We want to ensure that our participants are having a good time from the moment they enter the Marathon to the moment they leave the Civic Center in March.
What is your favorite DM memory?
I served on the CORE team for DM 2018 as a Morale Coordinator. It's sort of a tradition for all of CORE to stand on the backstage facing exec during the Final Reveal. Last year was full of so many obstacles, so it was incredible to be there with our whole team watching those numbers fly up and hitting our goal. It was probably one of the most powerful moments of my life so far.
What is your goal/what do you hope to gain from DM this year?
I would say that my goal this year would be to ensure that our campus as a whole feels involved with our cause. Our campus can feel very segmented due to how large it is. But when we come together for causes like this, it allows us to tear down any differences to achieve a goal. What I really hope to gain, is a stronger bond with our amazing Miracle Families, who are like our extended Tallahassee Family. I also hope to learn more about myself as a leader and as a person.
If you could only do one dance move for the rest of your life, which would it be and why?
This is really hard because I love dancing in general, but I would have to say that if I had to choose one for the rest of my life it would be the running man. It's simple, classic, and works with most songs.
DANIELA VILLASMIL, RECRUITMENT CHAIR
What is your role in Dance Marathon 2019?
I serve as the Recruitment Chair and I oversee Team Representatives, Team Miracle, tabling events, registering new fundraisers, volunteers, and dancer registration.
What is your favorite DM memory?
My experience on CORE during my sophomore year at FSU was the absolute best. What really made the year become whole was when all of CORE reached Comma Club at the Marathon. You could just feel the high energy and love from each other. I definitely felt many emotions and it brought CORE so much closer together.
What is your goal/what do you hope to gain from DM this year?
I hope to empower our student body to get involved with Dance Marathon. I hope to spread the word about our cause and that our student body knows that there are no restrictions on getting involved. This year, I am excited to see how much more my love for this movement continues to grow. Everyone in Dance Marathon has a story and I look forward to hearing those stories and learning from them!
How did you get involved in DM? What convinced you?
During my sophomore year in high school, I came to my sister's summer orientation session. The family orientation leader assigned to my family was actually the Recruitment Chair for DM at FSU during that time. She shared her love for Dance Marathon and definitely convinced me to get involved wherever I ended up going! Luckily, I ended up at FSU and became a Recruitment Captain my freshman year. I have not looked back since. Recruitment holds such a special place in my heart and I hope to impact our student body the same way the previous recruitment chair did so with me!
SANDRO PEREZ, MEMBERSHIP CHAIR
What is your role in Dance Marathon 2019?
This year I have the pleasure of being the 2019 Membership Chair for Dance Marathon at FSU and leading the Delegate Program. The Delegate Program is comprised of organizational representatives that have the great task of being the liaison between our organization and their external members.
What is your favorite DM memory?
Last year I served on the CORE team as a Membership Coordinator under Courtney Bine's leadership. Throughout that year, Dance Marathon at FSU realized the power our Delegates had in helping DM at FSU surpass every obstacle that was put in front of us. It was at the Marathon that we set out to accomplish a milestone DM at FSU's Delegate Program has never achieved before. My favorite memory is when I stole Courtney's phone hours before final reveal in hopes of surprising her, along with my fellow Membership Coordinators, that ALL the 2018 Delegates hit Comma Club. Running to the gong with every Delegate in celebration of this incredible milestone, one that has only been accomplished before by the amazing CORE and Morale group, was breathtaking. I will never forget how our whole team felt moments before one of the best final reveals yet.
What is your goal/what do you hope to gain from DM this year?
I would not be the person I am today without this organization. That said, this year I wish to grow the Delegate program to new heights and allow the student leaders in them to grow their leadership skills that they need in order to burn bright. Having been both a Delegate and a Membership Coordinator, I know the power this program can have in shaping them to become great individuals. I want nothing more than to continue seeing every single person in the Membership team thrive, both in and outside of Dance Marathon at FSU. I want my team to know, without a doubt, that they contributed to the impact that DM at FSU is going to make come March 3rd. Through this all, I wish to grow as a student leader and challenge myself to do things I have not yet accomplished before For The Kids.
How are you working with Delegates to ensure maximum success for DM 2019?
Going into this year, we are fostering a transparent and helpful community within the program. Although most of the Delegates' responsibilities lie within our external community, they are a part of the internal team alongside every Coordinator and Captain/INL. They are vital to the work we all do in these internal positions and to our organization's success. Being a Delegate is no easy job, but it sure is rewarding. If I could make their job easier throughout this year, even if it means answering a question they may have at 1AM, then that's what I'll do. Their program is planned strategically to ensure they are ready to take on every task they will need to accomplish in the coming weeks. Delegates, if you're reading this, I am already so proud of you all.
Looking to get more involved with our Dancer Relations Team? Dancer Registration is open from October 1st - 12th at dmfsu.org!
