When the going gets tough and the dancers have to keep going, mail call keeps them sane and inspired. Here are some mail call moments that captured the importance of those envelopes.
Ryan Belcher (Alpha Gamma Rho) says mail call was a sweet surprise for him and his partner.
“I didn’t know it was mail call actually,” Belcher says. “We were in the back, kind of at a low point and another dancer came back there with some [mail]. It’s kind of overwhelming but awesome at how much there is.”
Grant Kovich (Beta Theta Pi) says he wasn’t surprised to get mail but he still appreciated it (especially since he got mail from a special someone).
“I have so many friends involved in THON and in the Penn State community,” Kovich says. “Even if they couldn’t be here, they would send their support.”
Mallory Meehan (Smeal MBA) got surprises in the form of packages she missed from the last mail call and says they came right on time.
“I literally just got back from getting my feet wrapped because they were killing me so this was just what I needed,” Meehan says.
Sarah Collier (Society of Women Engineers) says that the letters from her family, friends, org people and THON family also were what she needed to keep going.
“I was starting to get tired and sore, especially from dancing up there [near the stage],” Collier says. “So it was a great pick-me-up.”
John Michaels (Sigma Phi Epsilon) got a pick-me-up a lot of us would be jealous of: a signed shirt from Christian Hackenberg (Michaels’ moraler knows him). Michaels also got a bunch of jokes and letters from his frat brothers and friends.
“I just thought it was inspirational, a good mix of stuff from a lot of great people,” Michaels says.
Allison Lederer (club water polo) says she got letters from Penn State people, friends from home and a lot of people she didn’t expect, all which were really heartfelt and emotional.
“We’re on that home stretch,” Lederer says. “And this is just bringing me home.”
It doesn’t matter if the mail comes in a manila envelope, a coloring book or just a folded piece of paper cut into a heart. What matters is that your favorite dancer will feel the love and enough energy to keep dancing FTK.
Photos by Gabby Mannino
