UGA Miracle Rivalry Week

Think back to your college days when the easiest way to make new friends outside of your residence hall was to get involved in a student organization. Through these small groups, you were able to make friends and shape your college experience. And although each student at UGA is different, they’re all brought together by a shared desire to beat Florida at the annual UGA vs UF football game. But this year, one student organization is taking the rivalry off the field.

This year, UGA Miracle has embraced the UGAvsUF rivalry and has turned it into something good. After a lot of planning and collaboration, UGA Miracle and the University of Florida’s Dance Marathon (DM) will compete against each other to raise money for Children’s Miracle Network and their respective Children’s Hospitals. Both organizations are competing with the same goal: to beat the other team “off-the-field.”

Since 1995, UGA Miracle has worked to raise money for the Comprehensive Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Beyond fundraising, students make hospital visits, plan events for the organization’s adopted “Miracle” children and families, and raise awareness for the hospital and Children’s Miracle Network. What started out as 300 members raising $20,000 in its first year has grown to 1,600 students raising $683,251 in 2015! Today, UGA Miracle is the largest campus organization at UGA. It will host its largest event, Dance Marathon, on February 20, 2016. For 24 hours, students and families will dance for those who cannot and help raise funds for Miracle children.

To kick off Rivalry Week, UGA Miracle hosted a Car Smash on Memorial Plaza. For a small fee, students could purchase the opportunity to smash a UF-themed vehicle. Today, UGA Miracle is hosting a series of percentage nights on St. Simons Island. Locations include Chick-Fil-a, Brogan’s, and Gnats Landing. The week’s events have raised funds for Children’s Miracle Network in the hopes of beating the University of Florida’s Dance Marathon. The winner will be revealed on Saturday, and there will be a surprise featuring one of the Miracle families during the first quarter of the game.

Alumni play a critical role in supporting UGA Miracle’s success. From the numerous donations to being involved in UGA Miracle as a student, there is no doubt that alumni have helped build the organization into what it is today.

By holding this week-long competition, the students of UGA Miracle hope to blow last year’s fundraising total out of the water and beat the Gators twice in one weekend. Interested in helping UGA Miracle reach their goal? Click here.

As their motto says, everything is “For the Kids,” so this week, help these students change the lives of the children of Children’s Healthcare.