Dancers are finding a new way to embrace dreams at this year's Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon.

A new Color Wars event called "Hugs" will be added to the list of activities for Thon weekend.

Mike Cocco, Thon morale overall, said it was created to see how many children dancers can meet each other during the weekend.

Cocco said hugs are fuzzy balls of yarn that every dancer and child will be wearing around their neck at Thon. Children will be wearing yellow hugs, while dancers will receive a variety of colors.

"You physically have to hug someone, and then after that, you tie a piece of yarn around the other person's [finger or necklace]," Cocco said.

Although hugs have been included in Thon for years, this is the first year the hugs have become part of the Color Wars competition. Color War teams consist of groups of moralers and dancers, all defined by a specific color.

Cocco added after the event is done, the dancers who are wearing the most yarn will win the event for their team.

Marissa Shay (sophomore-finance) said there will be 1,100 hugs made by Thon weekend. Hugs are made by moralers and will be distributed to dancers and children before the Color Wars event.

"When I danced, Hugs was one of my favorite events," Thon mail call co-captain Josh Hopp said. "I think making hugs a Color Wars event is a great idea."

Aryn Gabai, Thon Color Wars captain, said giving a hug is a great way for dancers and children to connect.

"[You are] actually getting your arms around people you are dancing to help," Gabai said.

Darby Hamilton (sophomore-business) is a member of the morale team who is in charge of making hugs for the weekend.

Hamilton said she has spent about five or six hours making the hugs.

"It's really a thing that if you have time sitting around watching TV, you make a couple," Hamilton said.

She added that at first her hugs looked awful, and it took her a few tries to get it down right.

Celeste Brown, Thon logistics and entertainment liason, said hugs have been used in the past as a way for dancers to provide inspiration for one another, but this year it is also an incentive to meet more children. "A lot of children know only their organization's dancers. [The Hugs event] gives them an opportunity to meet more dancers and people in Thon," Brown said.