It was appropriate, or at least good practice, for Morale Committee Chairman Ian Thomas and volunteer Christin Hartsfield to kick off the third annual UNC Dance Marathon Bids for the Kids Date Auction by showing the crowd their moves.
Twenty-two dates were auctioned off Thursday night to various women on campus to raise money for the Dance Marathon, which supports the N.C. Children's Hospital.
The auction, hosted by sorority Alpha Delta Pi and fraternity Kappa Sigma, was held at Club NV in Chapel Hill and raised $4,700, with $2,300 raised from the sale of the dates and $2,400 from the drink cover at the bar.
Members of UNC's athletic community and campus leaders donated their time to the event. Even Alistair Cooper, UNC Learning from Experience chairman and "the most eligible bachelor on campus," according to emcees, was on the block.
"It's a pretty diverse crowd," said Dana Gottheim, campus fund-raising chairwoman for Dance Marathon.
There was a plethora of women on the dance floor surrounding the runway as the dates were introduced, while most of the male attendees kept to the outskirts of the crowd, catcalling those up for auction.
"The boys aren't happy, but the girls sure are," Hartsfield said.
Bidding started at about $20, but the amounts crept up as the music pulsed faster and the men up for bid were coaxed out of articles of clothing.
A date with three of the men on the cheerleading team garnered the most money at $230. Senior basketball player Will Johnson went for $185, but the majority of the dates went for about $100.
