EASTLAKE MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY FOR GOOD CAUSE

More than 100 sixth through eighth grade students from Eastlake Middle School put on their dancing shoes April 15 when they cut a rug from noon until midnight at the 13th Annual Autism Awareness Dance-a-Thon.

This is the first year for the event since the pandemic, and everyone was thrilled for its return, especially W-E’s Autism Intervention Specialist Angela Minichello, who runs the dance-a-thon with fellow Intervention Specialist Ellen Murfey “Everyone comes together the students who are dancing, past students who return, individual donors sponsoring the dancers, and businesses in the community that donate,” said Minichello.

Since the event’s inception, students, who each pledged to raise $75 this year, and community members, have raised more than $131,000 to benefit local autism awareness and research programs. This year, recipients included Share a Vision, the Miracle League, Footprint Center for Autism and Kent State University’s Career and Community Studies Program.

Families with firsthand experience with autism also shared their stories of perseverance throughout the event to help students build understanding and a sense of empathy, an important component of the event