Warren County Public School students from South Warren, Warren East, Greenwood and Warren Central high schools reveal that they raised $16,515.85 in support of pediatric heart care and pediatric cancer care at Norton Children’s Hospital at the WCPS’ first joint Dance Little Red event at SWHS on Tuesday night, March 14, 2023. The event, which works in conjunction with WKU’s Dance Big Red and featured dancing, games, food and testimonials from families who have received care at Norton Children’s, returned for the first time after a three-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was the first time the WCPS schools came together to host the event as one entity. (Photo provided by Dana Matukas)

Warren County Public Schools hosted its first joint Dance Little Red event, in conjunction with Western Kentucky University’s Dance Big Red, at South Warren High School on Tuesday night to raise funds for children receiving life-saving care at Norton Children’s Hospital.

Over 100 students from Greenwood, Warren Central, Warren East and South Warren high schools gathered in the school’s gymnasium for the three-hour event to play games, dance, eat food and hear testimonials from Norton Children’s families.

At the end of the night, the students revealed they raised $16,515.85 in support of pediatric heart care and pediatric cancer care at Norton Children’s Hospital.

“Through the school year, the schools have been raising money from auctions, to calendars, to different things they’ve been doing at their schools,” said Norton Healthcare Communications Project Manager for the Western Kentucky Region Dana Matukas. “The great thing about this, it’s raising funds for Norton Children’s Hospital and it’s going directly to pediatric cancer and pediatric heart care.”

Since the inception of Dance Little Red, the high schools have each hosted their own DLR events and collectively raised over $50,000. Now back after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the school district sought to bring the students together under a common goal.

“You’ve got elementary schools raising funds, you’ve got middle schools raising funds with their Dance Middle Red,” Matukas said. “It’s bringing the community together at such an early age, which I think is really special because they’re instilling in them to give back, and, of course, for Norton Children’s, it’s huge for us. Over 185,000 children we care for each year, so it definitely makes an impact for our patients across the entire state.”

The event stems from WKU’s annual Dance Big Red event due in part to the university students’ active involvement and support for the Dance Little Red fundraisers.

“These dollars that are raised here tonight are part of the bigger picture with WKU’s Dance Big Red,” Matukas said. “We have students that are part of Dance Big Red at WKU that have been coming to the meetings to help support. So myself, the teachers, the student leaders and students from WKU come together and help support them throughout the year to pull the event together and any other fundraisers they do, like spirit nights, they are there to support. So it’s definitely an extension, having that support at a higher level with university students, but also just coming together for the bigger picture.”

WKU’s ninth annual Dance Big Red event will be held March 24 from 6 p.m. to midnight at Raymond B. Preston Health & Activities Center.