Meet Casey Sweeney, a philanthropist and visual communications major. Whether she’s raising money for Dance Marathon or working on graphics for their PR team, she strives to be creative in everything she does. Although Casey has big plans for her future, she also loves giving back and is motivated to make a difference in the world.
Name: Casey Sweeney
Year: Junior
Major: Visual Communications
Hometown: Hillsborough, NJ
Her Campus South Carolina: How did you decide to be a visual communications major?
Casey Sweeney: Growing up I always loved drawing and writing creative stories in school. In high school I started to take a lot of video and film classes along with graphic arts, and I soon realized that no matter what I did in life I wanted creativity to be a part of it. With visual communications, I knew I would be able to express my creativity through all sorts of different media.
HCSC: What is Dance Marathon?
CS: Dance Marathon is the largest student-run organization at USC. D.M. fundraises all year to help raise money for the Child Life Program at Palmetto Health Children’s Hospital. The Child Life Program ensures that children at the hospital will live as normal lives as possible. Dance Marathon helps fund music/animal therapy, playrooms, birthday/holiday parties, and so much more. We end the year with a final fundraising push: a 14-hour standing event held at Strom Thurmond Fitness Center.
HCSC: What do you love about Dance Marathon?
CS: It is amazing to see how much Dance Marathon has brought students and families together. Working hard all year and seeing how much money you have raised to help others is extremely rewarding. It’s a hard feeling to describe, but it’s one of the best feelings in the world.
HCSC: Why did you become involved in DM?
CS: At first, I became involved with DM because of my sorority’s push to get involved in the school and help support Children’s Miracle Network hospitals, which is also their philanthropy. After being a volunteer hero my freshman year and experiencing the main event, I stayed involved for many other reasons. I feel lucky enough to be a healthy college student who is able to live a normal life and get an education. D.M. made me realize that some children do not grow up as lucky and spend weeks on end in the hospital. Realizing the life that some miracle children live motivated me to make their stay at the hospital as enjoyable as possible so they can still feel like a normal kid.
HCSC: What role do you play as a staff member of the PR team?
CS: On PR, I take pictures and create graphics that help promote special events like percent nights, special fundraising days, and the main event.
HCSC: What do you hope to do in the future?
In the future I hope to go into advertising or digital marketing. But no matter what I do, creativity and giving back to the community will always be a part of my life.
Want to help Casey reach her fundraising goal? Donate to her Dance Marathon page!