For some student organizations, Thon is an opportunity to get involved with campus activities -- but not without a lot of hard work and a hefty price tag.

"We thought it would be a really big issue raising money," said Anamika Anand, Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon chair for the Indian Student Association. "But it really wasn't."

To register a couple, Thon required groups to raise a minimum of $900. For some newer and smaller student organizations, this was not an easy task.

"Once we got started, things were a whole lot easier than we thought they would be," Anand said.

A canning trip to New York City aided in the group's fund-raising efforts. Twenty members went on the trip and raised nearly $600, she said.

The group first sponsored a couple in Thon three years ago, but did not participate last year, which made the group excited about participating this year, she said.

"It's also our first year that we got a family," she added.

Other student organizations shared similar concerns about not being able to meet the required amount to sponsor a couple.

"We were really afraid we weren't going to be able to raise enough money," said LeeAnn Slater, Thon chair for Volé, the Penn State ballet club.

While Volé has existed for two years, this is the first year they decided to dance in Thon, Slater said. It was hard to generate interest at first, but then the club's president designated a Thon chair and the group started to raise money, she said.

"The first trip we really surprised ourselves because we raised more than we expected," Slater said. Volé raised money by going on canning trips to Philadelphia and New Jersey for two weekends.

The group was concerned about not raising enough money at first because only five members went on the canning trips, Slater said.

But after the group had its first successful trip, it had no doubt that it would raise enough money.

"Our families were really generous, too," she said, adding that individual contributions from members' families played a large part in the fundraising effort.