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Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

IUDM members skydive for a cause

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From IDS reports

IU Dance Marathon committee members went skydiving with teddy bears attached to their chests this weekend. Their mission — to create the “bravest teddy bears in the world.”

IUDM committee members collaborated with Canopies for Kids, a nonprofit organization that allows skydivers to jump with teddy bears given to hospitalized children. These teddy bears will be given to patients at Riley Hospital for Children, and a portion of the money raised from the event will be given to the hospital itself.

More than 100 IUDM participants took the plunge with Skydive Indianapolis, jumping from a height of 13,000 feet and free falling through the air at 120 miles per hour.

“This, more than anything, is not a fundraising event,” senior Maddy Vonderohe, the event’s facilitator, said. “We are doing things for the children themselves, rather than just a blind donation.”

Vonderohe originally heard about Canopies for Kids from a previous member of the Riley Development committee. From there, she reached out to the nonprofit organization’s founder, Matt Kuikman, to see if he would be interested in doing a joint event with IUDM members. He immediately agreed.

Kuikman’s original inspiration for Canopies for Kids came from participating in IUDM when he attended IU, said Vonderohe.

The cost of each kit was $20 on top of the jump fee, and included a teddy bear wearing a Canopies for Kids tee in a special flight suit plastic bag, as well as a card with a heartfelt message for participants to sign and personalize. A $5 donation, which will benefit the Riley Hospital for Children, was built into each kit.

“We are trying to give the best quality of life to these kids,” Vonderohe said.

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