THON™ Beyond: Jill Linette Takes On HYROX For The Kids® 

By Ryan Murphy and Jack Pronobis  

Jill Linette, a proud Penn State alumna, is competing in the Denver HYROX competition in November to support THON™. A HYROX competition is a popular strength-and-endurance challenge hosted in major cities. As Jill has been training for the HYROX, she has been busy fundraising and gaining support nationwide for THON.  

Upon arriving at Penn State over 20 years ago, Jill was instantly drawn to THON after learning about it from the people around her.  

“Hearing some of my peers and their stories about their own experiences with childhood cancer, and then realizing, how can I make a difference?” She remembered. Jill soon realized that THON was truly incredible. She described it as a great community, with great people, doing great things. Although Jill never got to be a dancer, she loved cheering on and supporting her friends.  

While Jill had the honor of being a THON volunteer as a student, that is not where her story with THON ends.  

After earning her bachelor’s degree in Life Science, Jill spent time working as a volatile organic chemist. Her turning point came after an unexpected car accident. A nurse anesthetist helped save her life, and the experience sparked something in Jill that would reshape her career.  

“I’ve only ever heard of anesthesiologists…tell me more,” she recalled. That curiosity set her on her “13-year-long journey” to Penn State Hershey Medical Center.  

Jill began working at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in 2010, the only hospital in Pennsylvania with both a Level One adult and Level One pediatric trauma center. She started in the emergency department, where she often met Four Diamonds children arriving in crisis. Working side by side with child life specialists, Jill helped coordinate the surgical and medical care families needed at the moment.  

She also spent time working in other units. Jill had a stint in the pediatric ICU, and she also worked in the float pool as a registered nurse, which let her work across Hershey’s different pediatric floors. Eventually, she went back to anesthesia school at Villanova. This experience brought her back to the same group of patients but in a new role, where she administered anesthesia for children going through chemotherapy, lumbar punctures, and surgeries.  

“It was such an honor to work with the kids, their families, people that love them, our child life coordinator,” said Jill. 

For Jill, her work holds a deeper meaning that ties directly back to THON.  

“To come from Penn State THON canning on the side of the road…seeing where does this actually help…to actually taking care of the kids was a really crazy full-circle moment for me.”  

Jill recently moved to Colorado, and finding her community in a new place has been important for her. Community is something that keeps Jill going when things get tough, and she was able to find that in her new home.  

“Everybody in Colorado that I’ve experienced so far is very like-minded. It reminds me of my Penn State crew, very like-minded and community-oriented,” Jill said.  

She found her people, and her people want to do good and give back to a cause bigger than themselves. She found this community through doing workouts throughout Colorado, specifically in the Red Rocks park.  

Jill explained how THON has impacted her outlook on life and has benefited her greatly. “We all go through challenging things. We experience the highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and it takes a village. It takes a community of people in your life, whether that’s friends, family, coaches, or people in your life,” she says. “When I think of THON, I think about hope, resiliency, and strength.”  

Jill talked about how not only the dancers, students, and volunteers are doing something incredible, but most importantly, the kids themselves. Jill participates in THON because THON represents community, hope, and the idea of making someone’s hardest moments a little easier.  

“It’s such a meaningful way to connect to my Penn State experience,” she says.  

Throughout her life, Jill has reminders not to take anything for granted. She has seen firsthand how difficult it is to not be able to walk, have working lungs, or be home with loved ones. Seeing these things, but also the support that comes from them, have reinforced to Jill why it is important to show up for others.  

Jill continues to support THON, even 20 years after graduating from Penn State, because she must remember her why.  

“When I’m running, I can’t breathe at altitude, and my legs are hurting, I’m thinking about those kids in the hospital bed that can’t play, they can’t eat, and they can’t stand up. They can’t do any of the things that we take a lot for granted.” 

Throughout her life, she continuously remembers the cause she is fighting for. She remembers the bigger picture and makes sure she doesn’t forget it. Jill is doing this For The Kids®.  

“It’s my why. It’s what is getting me through,” Jill says.  

She emphasizes how proud she is of all participants involved in THON, and she wants people to remember that when they have those hard days or are exhausted, that it is so important go back to their why.  

Jill would like to thank her biggest supporters in helping her achieve this goal: her sister, Hayley Linette Concordia, her parents, Rick Linette and Marsha Spadt, her boyfriend Jacob Dietrich, and her people, Jim Hacker, Emmy GreyEyes, Jennifer Connor, Kathleen McDermott, Nicole Rohrbaugh, Tim Lloyd and Nate Snyder. She would also like to thank Old Town Athletic Club and crew in Fort Collins for all her training. 

The THON community is looking forward to cheering on Jill at her HYROX competition and is so proud to see her compete For The Kids®! Click here for more information on Jill’s fundraising efforts!