THONcast: Beyond the 46 Hours is rapidly growing by providing a closer look at THON™ and Four Diamonds operations, families, and volunteers. The episodes are aimed at providing a behind-the-scenes look at the world’s largest student-run philanthropy by bringing guests on to talk about their roles within THON and Four Diamonds. In its founding year, 2025, Kristen Donahoe, Julia Skrip, and Ashley Poskitt worked closely together to help make THONcast come to life. The episodes were aimed at educating the audience about THON, Four Diamonds, and their history. To build upon this foundation, Ava Nociforo wanted to “showcase other aspects of THON that are not as apparent on the surface” in her final year volunteering for THON as a student.
As a senior, Ava served as the THONcast Lead on the Alumni Engagement committee while pursuing a dual degree in Communication, Arts, Science (CAS) and Public Relations on the pre-law track. THON 2026 marked her third year as a captain. In her new role, she worked closely with the Alumni Campaigns Coordinator and the Alumni Communications Coordinator to write, film, and edit every episode of THONcast.
“I am the first captain to hold the THONcast position, and I cannot wait to see how it grows and evolves,” Ava said.
As THONcast Lead, Ava made it a priority to have a variety of guests on the podcast to highlight different aspects of THON. Whether it be workers from Four Diamonds, Four Diamond siblings, or members of the THON Executive Committee, these episodes provide insight into THON’s mission.
When stepping into this position, Ava, who enjoys listening to podcasts in her free time, knew it was important to create a consistent brand for THONcast to make the podcast come to life. She quickly got to work by creating sound effects, formatting, and high-quality production that could be used for all episodes. “It has been so much fun to be creative and create every episode, Ava said of the experience.”
These aspects of THONcast have turned into one of Ava’s proudest accomplishments in her senior year.
“It was really important to me that I made THONcast both interesting and visually appealing for people to watch/listen to…In this year alone, we have had so much positive feedback from viewers and the guests about THONcast and its production quality.”
Growing up, Ava has always found an interest in creating different video projects at school, and what started as a small interest grew into a passionate hobby of hers in college.
“Because THONcast is so new, there is so much untapped potential in episode ideas and guests we can feature. Not to mention, the editing opportunities are endless with fun additions like music, transitions, and fades.”
“I knew I wanted to create something bigger than myself, something that could outlast me once I graduated, and I love how THONcast has given me that creative outlet to showcase our amazing THONcast Community.”
Ava sends a special thank you to Julia, Ashley, and Kristen for creating such a beautiful podcast, emphasizing that it was an honor to take over this role and make it even bigger and better.
THON™ is able to donate 96 cents of every dollar raised to Four Diamonds at Penn State Health Golisano Children’s Hospital because of supporters like you. Your generosity creates moments of joy for Four Diamonds children and families and empowers our volunteers through year-round events, fundraisers and THON Weekend.
