The freezing rain cut the night in half and kept several students inside, but Up 'Til Dawn still raised more than $129,000 for the kids at St. Jude Feb. 17, a record for The University of Memphis.
"I knew The U of M would do something big, but I didn't expect it to be this big," said Laurie Yeargin, Up 'Til Dawn executive director. "The student body is awesome. They just wanted to help so much, and they came through even in the clutch."
Normally scheduled for 12 hours, the impending weather caused the night's events to be rescheduled the night before to fit into six hours.
"We spent three or four hours trying to reschedule the event, so it was rushed, but ultimately we wanted to make sure everyone had a great time and keep everyone safe," said Jonathon Lemmons, Up 'Til Dawn internal assistant director.
Several of the entertainers had to be cancelled, but the quickness of the evening made the event more enjoyable, Yeargin said.
"It actually worked out really well. There was so much going on, so no one got bored," she said.
Some of the entertainers included the Beale Street Flippers, the bands Early Maxwell, Three Lock Box and Atom, the world's fastest painter.
"This is my fourth year on UTD, and I was sad that we couldn't have the whole 12-hour event, given that the whole philosophy is to give a day of your life for the life of a child, but when I saw the check, it didn't matter anymore," said Meagan Simpson, UTD catering executive.
One hundred and twenty-seven teams participated, most of which were non-greek based, also a first for this year's event. Even with the rain, about 400 to 500 people showed up to help raise money.
"This is the most money that's ever been raised at The University of Memphis, and we're the first school in the country to raise half a million for the hospital," Lemmons said.
The yearly monetary goal for UTD is $120,000, a sum that is still being surpassed.
"People are still sending us money from our letter writing party," Simpson said. "We're hoping to be close to $150,000 soon."
A frequent donor to St. Jude, The U of M has become a mentor to other participants.
"(St. Jude) always gets us to speak, and we're always helping out other schools that come through to tour the hospital," Yeargin said. "This is like we're leaving a legacy."
And that legacy is just as important to Simpson.
"Raising this money is really important to us because we started UTD (at The U of M), and now it has spread all over the country," she said.
Besides money, Lemmons said the best part comes from the student body.
"I've been a part of a lot of organizations, but there's nothing more exciting than knowing that the whole school came together for these kids at St. Jude," he said.
