Every 40 seconds on average, someone in the United States suffers a stroke. A stroke is when blood flow to an area of the brain is cut off, causing brain cells to die and parts of the brain to lose function, and is the 5th leading cause of death globally. One person within our community who suffered from a stroke in 2015, but luckily survived and has since recovered, is Dan Thompson, father of Alicia Thompson ’17. To honor her father and inform others about the dangers of strokes, she organized Dan’s Dash, a stroke awareness fundraiser that occurred on May 14th 2016; it included a race and other activities to raise awareness and funds for the National Stroke Association. “I was grateful that my dad had recovered from his aneurysm and stroke, and I wanted to give back and help other people. I felt so lucky, so I wanted to help other people who had been impacted by strokes and also raise awareness,” said Thompson of what led her to take action. Some more uplifting statistics unclude: up to 80% of strokes can be prevented, there are treatments available, and there are many warning signs for strokes. “A lot people don’t realize how common strokes actually are, so just the idea of Dan’s Dash helped raise awareness,” Thompson explained. Hopefully, with the awareness and funds raised by Dan’s Dash and the National Stroke Association, the devastating effects of strokes can become a thing of the past.

The fundraiser included a 2 mile walk, 3 mile run, 1 mile run, and various fun mini-activities including a bean bag toss and water balloons, as well as a bake sale. The entire event was organized and promoted by WFS students in the Dan’s Dash club, run by Thompson and faculty sponsor Mark Schmittle. Word of the event was spread through WFS using flyers created by the committee, creating a Facebook event and information page, and by word of mouth throughout the Friends community. The event spread stroke awareness through posters showing stroke facts displayed around the track where the event was held, pamphlets containing stroke information from the National Stroke Association, and a website. “We also just went around and asked people to come in person. We sent out emails to various adults. I also think that some committee members put up flyers in a few coffee shops,” Thompson recalls. More than just students attended, however; a community of parents, siblings, teachers, and friends, all came together to show their support at the event.

The event ended up raising nearly $6000 for the National Stroke Association, and the Association honored Thompson with the 2016 RAISE Award for the Most Impactful Community Fundraising Effort. “It was a collaborative effort with great help from everyone on the Dan’s Dash committee: Mr. Schmittle as our advisor, Mrs. Tornek who created the Dan’s Dash logo, Mrs. Gatti, and Mr. O’Kane who helped with the planning and fundraising ideas, and the help of lots of other people like committee members’ parents, the grounds staff, building services staff, Mr. Ransom, and Devon Adams,” added Thompson, of how the WFS community came together to make her vision of the event a reality. “I’m thankful for all the great help and all the generous donors who helped to make Dan’s Dash such a success.”

The committee is meeting again regularly, and hopes that Dan’s Dash’s second year will be as big, or even bigger, of a success as last year. Thompson is hoping this year to gear the event more towards the WFS student community, and to get them as involved as possible. “The committee is still working out the details of this year. We are going to try to orient it more towards students,” she explains. With last year’s Dan’s Dash being so successful, and as much fun as it was, word of mouth will surely spread throughout the WFS community and make the next Dan’s Dash an even bigger success.