After losing her daughter, Debi Hobbs is working to increase the quality and accessibility to mental health care for children in the Syracuse area.
She wanted to be like Michael Myers.
Debi Hobbs woke up in the middle of the night fearing something was wrong. She found her daughter, Amaya Stethers, in the closet with a knife. Amaya, who had been diagnosed with Schizoaffective Disorder and Autism, later told her mother that she wanted to be like famed movie killer.
Even after this episode, Hobbs waited two months, trying everything else in her power, before seeking an inpatient facility for her daughter. When she could, Hobbs avoided the inpatient facilities available around Syracuse.
Combining singing, dancing, and fundraising, SU's 12-hour dance marathon OttoTHON proved to be a success for the kids of Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital.
Dressed in neon, tutus, and fanny packs, people packed into Syracuse University's Women's Building to participate in the university's first ever dance marathon, OttoTHON.
Beginning at Penn State University as a fundraiser event years ago, dance marathons have gradually become national events.