Windermere High School preps for Dance Marathon

The Miracle Children’s Network logo is the outline of a hot-air balloon, aka “Miracle Balloon.”

It represents high hopes, optimism and bright futures for children at Children’s Miracle Network hospitals. 

This year, students at Windermere High brought a new idea to life: Pre-sale shirts now are being sold to raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network as part of a yearlong effort called the Dance Marathon. 

But what makes this idea so special is the inclusion of Miracle Children in the shirt’s design. 

Six balloons can be found in the back of the shirt, each uniquely decorated by a Miracle child.

They all vary in colors: one is blue, one is yellow, one is green and others are multicolor.

One Miracle child able to participate in the project was Myles Murillo. 

Born at 1 pound, 13 ounces, Myles, now 12, stayed at Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies for about three months before weighing 4 pounds and being released home. 

Beyond developmental issues due to his premature birth, Myles also was diagnosed with epilepsy. 

When he was 6 years old, he had a vagal nerve stimulator implanted to prevent seizure activity by sending electrical impulses to his brain. 

“When he came out of surgery the first time with his device, he said, ‘Dad, the kids are going to make fun of me. I’m gonna have this scar, and the kids are gonna make fun of me because of it,’” Alan Murillo, Myles’ father, said. “I said, ‘No, it’s what’s different about you that makes you a superhero.’ He absorbed that and (now) lives that lifestyle of wanting to be a superhero and always wanting to help people when he can.” 

Myles is one of many children who make up the Children’s Miracle Network, which receives annual donations from high schools and universities through their Dance Marathons, a yearlong Student Government Association-led movement to raise funds and awareness for local children’s hospitals. 

For nine consecutive years, Windermere High has raised funds to go toward Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children. 

For the past four years, Myles has enjoyed most fundraisers and main events Windermere High’s SGA has hosted. 

To him, those students are his brothers and sisters, his dad said. To the students, Myles is a superhero, inspiration and little brother. 

“He’s made a huge difference in the community here,” said Evan Brengel, Windermere High’s SGA adviser. “He’s just this ball of sunshine. … He’ll come up to you and tell you, ‘You’re my best friend, I love you, and I love being here.’ We’ve had some really special moments with Myles.” 

WOLVERINES IN ACTION

About 130 students from Windermere High raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network each year by selling Bundt cakes; hosting car washes; putting on kickball, pickleball and dodgeball tournaments; having spirit nights at different restaurants; and more. 

This year, the goal is to raise a minimum of $80,000 to go toward Orlando Health’s planned Children’s Pavilion, but the students can see the total reaching six figures.

The pavilion requires an investment of $165 million, and the hospital hopes to open it to the public this year. It will be a six-story building holding more than 30 pediatric specialities, enhancing physician collaboration and improving family and patient experiences. 

As of Monday, Jan. 26, at least 15 students have raised $1,000 each and are recognized as the “Comma Club.” 

Another new idea is “For the Kids Week” or “FTK Week,” where the entire week preceding the final fundraising initiative known as the main event is dedicated to raising funds for the Children’s Miracle Network through spirit nights, events, “push days” and “match days.” 

The main event is an 11-hour event in which students stay on their feet to honor children who can’t, while performing an eight-minute dance routine every hour. When students aren’t dancing, they are meeting Children’s Miracle Network families, playing games with the kids and participating in activities. 

“There’s never a point where anyone’s just sitting there doing nothing,” Event Planner Emma Angelo said. “There’s always something going on, which is super, super nice. That’s how we get a lot of miracle kids to come out here. By the end of it, we’re all off energy drinks and caffeine.” 

MAKING IT HAPPEN

Windermere High students work for six months to create a dance, come up with a theme, find innovative ways to raise money and work out the logistics of the project. 

The Morale Club is in charge of creating the dance that will be performed at main event. 

This year, seniors Katheryn Middleton and Livia Moraes are the Morale Club’s captains. 

“Morale Club is … a way to get people who are not in SGA and who are not on the board more involved,” Moraes said. “So a lot of the people who are coming to these Morale Club meetings are people who want to do it, people who are passionate about this.” 

Moraes and Middleton created an eight-minute dance to teach it to more than 100 students once per week until February. 

It wasn’t easy, but they did it. 

“We tried to use a lot of TikTok audios and trendy things that people would really get excited about,” Moraes said. 

Some songs included in the dance routine include “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” “Doot Doot (6 7)” and more. 

Beyond creating and teaching the dance, Middleton also came up with this year’s theme, “Lego.” 

The idea came to her after Dance Marathon Executive Director Chase Prevett brought up the “Lego” movie in a conversation, which he had watched the night before. 

A few moments after the conversation ended, Middleton had an “a-ha” moment, suggesting the theme be “Lego” because of its versatility. 

“Anything can be ‘Lego,’” Prevett said. “There’s so much creative stuff we can do with it to market and make it such a fun influence.” 

Students also are working on creating life-sized Legos. 

The goal is to glue Miracle Children’s faces on them and their stories throughout the gym’s lobby. 

But to them, the “Lego” theme is more than just a fun way to market the event. 

“This year’s slogan is ‘building one brick at a time,’ so every brick represents a miracle that was gifted to one of these kids, whether it was the money that we raised or just a miracle that decided to happen for them, that’s how we’re incorporating it,” Angelo said. 

Middleton added the feeling of accomplishment knowing how many children they’re helping through their efforts makes any challenge worth confronting. 

Not only are Windermere High students making a positive impact on local children’s hospitals and Miracle Children, but also the Dance Marathon is impacting them. 

Angelo, Prevett, Middleton and Moraes all hope to continue participating in Dance Marathons one way or another, even if that means starting it from scratch at their universities. 

“Just knowing that we had a part in impacting Myles’ parents and his life, just truly means the world to me, and it makes me feel like I can make a total difference in the world,” Moraes said.