THON™ Org Spotlight: Delta Sigma Pi 

THON™ is a year-round effort built on the dedication of students and volunteers across Penn State. Every volunteer and organization brings something unique to the fight against childhood cancer, and together they create the heart of the THON community. 

This week, we will be highlighting Delta Sigma Pi (DSP), a professional business fraternity here at Penn State. We talked with their Primary THON Chair, Kylie Gilliard and Fundraising Chair, Ben Guenther, to showcase DSP THON’s story and role in the THON community. 

Q: Can you tell me a little bit your THON experience and your role in DSP THON? 

Kylie: “I am the Primary THON Chair for DSP this year. My sophomore year I was the Family Relations Chair and then last year I was our Community Outreach and Development Chair. I’ve gotten a lot of experiences to build relationships with our families as well as people in our organization. It has been one of my favorite parts about being in college.” 

Ben: “I am a senior here at Penn State and I am the Fundraising Chair for DSP THON. My freshman and sophomore year I was a Public Relations Committee Member and last year I was a Public Relations Captain. My main role this year is to hold events to keep the brotherhood engaged and allow them to make as big of an impact as they possibly can.” 

Q: How does DSP typically get involved throughout the THON year? 

Kylie: “We have a lot of fundraising events throughout the year that we like to keep consistent, whether that be THON volleyball or the THON Gala. The gala is a big event as DSP members, their families, and THON families come together to celebrate our dancers right before THON Weekend. It is an emotional event because it builds the excitement for THON Weekend, and gets the members excited as well. We also attend some of the fundraisers like THON volleyball and stadium cleanups. This year we also have done a lot of ribbon sales downtown which is something new that pledge classes do every Friday before games.” 

Ben: “The chairs all create and prepare the events, but it is the brothers that help it come together. We are so lucky to be in DSP THON because the people around us are so engaged and help us serve such a big impact to our families and families in the THON community. It starts with every brother that has been so involved just naturally. It is something so great that we have.” 

Q: Can you share a little bit about your families? 

Kylie: “We have three families: The Sydney Bush Family, The Andrew Wright Family, and The Grace Schneider Family. We have been paired with the Bushes for a very long time. This past THON was Syd’s 20^th THON. We got to see her speak at THON 2024 which was so cool and to be at Penn State with Syd the past two years was awesome. We’ve also gotten to go to different events with her family when they come to visit. Syd is now working for Four Diamonds and does tours for the different orgs and captains that visit Penn State Hershey Medical Center. For Andrew, we always go bowling with him for his birthday in October and it is an event that we always look forward to. He always comes to visit THON Weekend, and is currently renovating a house with his girlfriend, so we are so excited for him. Grace is so much younger than everybody else, so it is so cool to see how she has grown over the last few years. I got to be on the floor with her for her first THON and it was an amazing opportunity. We also try to go to her cheerleading events and visit her and her family over Christmas.” 

Ben: “It’s pretty full circle for the Bush family because the Schneider family is really almost the exact same family as the Bushes, and Syd gets to see her story through Grace. Grace has an absolute perfect role model in Syd Bush.” 

Q: What is your favorite DSP THON memory? 

Kylie: “We always have a tailgate for all our families on the day of the THON football game. During my sophomore year, we were at the tailgate, and it was a beautiful day and then suddenly it started pouring rain. The second it started raining, Grace grabbed my hand and pulled me out into the rain, and everyone formed a circle around us as we danced. “Love Story” by Taylor Swift came on and if there is one thing to know about Grace it’s that she loves Taylor Swift! We all lifted her up on our shoulders and danced with her. It was one of the most emotional experiences I had ever had because it was 6 months after her being cancer free.” 

Ben: “My favorite DSP THON memory would be my freshman year as a whole. I came to Penn State wanting to make an impact right away. That year was the year that Grace Schneider had her cancer free party and getting to see the light of that family and the weight lift off their shoulders, it was an absolute unreal experience. It was so awesome to see the direct impact THON has, and that inspired me to keep going in my THON journey.” 

Q: What are your goals for THON 2026? 

Kylie: “We are looking at trying to raise engagement. DSP THON has been growing so fast over the past four years and keeping up with that growth is really important. We have committee members under all of our chairs this year and we are giving specific jobs to each person. It is going to be an awesome experience to get them involved. One of the roles will be focusing on engagement and will be working on DSP THON newsletters and brother-bonding THON centered events. We always want to keep why we THON at the center of everything we do.” 

Ben: “Engagement is a clear and stated goal for this year. Our engagement over the last couple of years has skyrocketed. If we can reach everyone in the brotherhood, we can continue the culture that has been created. We want to have everyone engaged as much as they possibly can. DSP THON is the main goal each and every year and we want everyone to be involved. We want to bring so many different people that are interested in so many different things together for THON.” 

Q: What message would you share with other students or supporters who want to get involved? 

Kylie: “This is such an amazing organization to be a part of and it makes a big school feel small. Everyone has a place in THON. Always keep why you do what you do at the heart of everything.” 

Ben: “Do it! I’ve met a lot of people that have been involved in THON, and I have never heard anyone say they regretted it. To see students take time away from their day to help families with childhood cancer is inspiring and there is absolute beauty in it. You can go anywhere in the country and not see anything like this. The amount of selflessness in this community is incredible. Get involved as much as you possibly can.”