When Sierra McCauley was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma cancer five years ago at age 6, that didn’t stop her from continuing to compete with her studio, Sonya’s Dance Zone, in Columbus, Indiana. Despite six months of chemotherapy, McCauley even competed in a Nationals. “I remember going onstage without any hair and a bow taped to my head,” she says.
During her stay at Riley Hospital for Children, McCauley made several friends, a few of whom sadly passed away during their struggles with cancer. Last year, she performed a special tribute dance to honor those friends. Now, she’s created a social-media challenge to help raise funds for the Riley Children’s Foundation: #dancerbeatingcancer. The challenge’s premise is simple, just like the #IceBucketChallenge from 2014—you post a short video of yourself dancing to Meghan Trainor’s “Better When I’m Dancin'” and challenge others to do the same, tagging your post with #dancerbeatingcancer. Then, you head to the Riley Children’s Foundation donation page to donate funding for pediatric research.
Check out the videos below for inspiration!
The Thunder Girls, dance team for the Oklahoma City Thunder:
Legacy Dance Academy, in El Segundo, California:
Vanderbilt Spirit, a non-competitive cheerleading squad, dance team and mascot program:
