At the beginning of the final four hours of THON 2012, Jay Paterno took the stage, greeted with a roaring ovation by the capacity Bryce Jordan Center crowd. He offered some words of encouragement for the dancers, who have been sleepless since Friday afternoon.
While it was chance that crossed my path with that of John Carrano's, John is by no means unheard of within the THON community, nor is his famous jacket that he sports each THON Weekend. For the unfamiliar, John's jacket exudes that authentic retro vibe (not hipster retro), sporting a block-lettered Penn State logo, an embroidered Nittany Lion patch, and the years (last two numbers) and themes of every THON year from 1995 to 2012's "Brighten Every Journey."
As our bodies began to feel the weight of the 40 hours endured thus far of THON 2012, our spirits relentlessly carried on. With the second half of the “Family Variety Hour” as our second (or third) wind, and with the exciting end now in sight, a new energy hit the floor Sunday morning.
Four Diamonds child and YouTube sensation Tucker Haas returned to the THON stage to sing "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO, accompanied by some great shuffling moves.
As our Dan Vecellio wrote, "the body needs a spark plug to give its internal battery the juice to push through the final hours of THON, and dancer mail is that spark plug." We interviewed a handful of dancers shortly after mail call, to find out just what got them ticking. What's the best piece of dancer mail you received?
Dancer mail is a time for laughs and tears as dancers get things to take their minds off of their aching and tired bodies. But, one dancer received mail from his girlfriend that ailed all that cured him.