Dancing from her apartment in King of Prussia, Kayla McCauley is excited to take on THON 2021.

Kayla is proud to be dancing for the College of Earth and Mineral Science’s Four Diamonds families: the Brewers, the Woods, the Hollingers, and the Schmidts.

During her freshman year, Kayla had the opportunity to join the Student Council for the College of EMS on a family retreat where she stayed overnight at a family’s house. These families brought the THON mission to life, and Kayla was hooked. Kayla continued her THON journey becoming the Family Relations Director for EMS her sophomore year, and her connections with the families grew further. Now a senior, Kayla is more than happy to dance for her organization and paired families.

Kayla painted a great picture of how committed the College of EMS Student Council is to THON. Sustaining regular contact and scheduling monthly visits brought her and her organization closer and closer to their four families.

She described her favorite fundraising event that EMS hosts called Date Night. Members of her organization offer pizza dinners, cupcakes, movie nights, and even old THON gear from alumni up to auction for other members to bid on and enjoy.

We asked Kayla what this year’s “Rise and Unify” tagline meant to her and she said, “Rise and Unify describes the THON community and all of the challenges brought with this year. It shows we can’t do it alone, and it takes all of us to rise and unify to make THON happen.”

Even though this year’s THON may not be a normal atmosphere for a dancer, she stays optimistic to take advantage of the opportunities THON has given her. Kayla wants to give back to these Four Diamonds families and to THON as much as they have given to her.