When Florida Delta Caroline Gibson began volunteering with University of Florida (UF) Dance Marathon, she could not imagine the impact it would make on her life. Her experiences of dancing and standing for 26.2 hours to raise money and awareness for UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital and Children’s Miracle Network are connected to her own experiences.

At 2 1/2 years old, Caroline was diagnosed with leukemia and was not released from the hospital until she was five years old. “You have doctors to help you get better,” says Caroline, “but people don’t think about the support you need.” So Caroline has been very passionate about helping kids and assisting in keeping their spirits high.

Caroline did not realize her passion for Dance Marathon could shift her potential career path. Always interested in studying Industrial and Systems Engineering, Caroline did not know that her studies could help these children in the hospital. Through her involvement in Dance Marathon, she met the CEO of Shands. He talked to her about the needs in efficiency and how the hospital could utilize the skill set Caroline excels in.

Last summer, Caroline had the opportunity to intern at UF Health Shands Hospital. As a teaching hospital, there are four full-time staff members and four interns per area. So Caroline was in close contact with people in the field to mentor her throughout the experience. The internship allowed a lot of data reflection and their supervisor would ask, “How would you approach this scenario based on your education?”

One special project for Caroline occurred when her intern cohort worked on a project for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Milk technicians are available to assist new moms in the process of breast-feeding, including milk for adoptions and donor milk. The technicians felt understaffed. But based on the hospital’s staffing tools, the hospital believed the staff numbers were correct. It was the project of Caroline’s intern cohort to come in and figure out why the staff felt the way they did.

The interns realized that the milk technicians had no plan or structure, so they created a standardized process for rotations in the area. The next piece of the project was to reconfigure the layout of the milk room, which relocated their space to the NICU area. Caroline was extremely proud to help create the setup and was heavily involved in solving the problem for the hospital.

Caroline admits that it was not until she joined Dance Marathon that she realizes how much one receives from giving so much. Her own parents say they have not heard her happier than when she talks about the kids. She found her passion to help others and it comes to full circle for the young girl that was given so much when she was younger.