The co-founder of a charity event at Villa Joseph Marie High School, Southampton, sadly passed away before she could see the fruits of her labor. Her classmates, however, pushed forward in her name, reports Matteo Iadonisi for 6abc. 

Class President Maria Middleton collaborated with school friends to create an engaging fundraiser for area charities. They settled on a dance-a-thon with a spring 2020 date. 

All went well until the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled the event. 

The teens bided their time, looking to hold it 12 months or so later. 

Tragically, Middleton, who was engaged in her own struggle with a brain tumor, passed away as the dance sat fallow. 

Middleton’s friend, Grace Kelly, picked up the mantle and pushed forward. The seven-hour marathon, held safely, raised nearly $90.000 before it even began. 

“If there’s one thing about Maria, she was definitely brave and she’s definitely dedicated,” said Kelly. “She was a cofounder of this event, and it meant a lot to her. So we’re dancing for her today.” 

“There’s no adults at all involved in this,” said Tom Kardish, President of Villa Joseph Marie High School. “They think of every logistic. It’s all them, and we couldn’t be more proud.” 

Of Middleton’s role in the charitable event and her enormous loss, Kardish called her “…the epitome of what a woman Villa Joseph Marie embodies.”

More on how these high-school girls rallied around each other and the less fortunate, see 6abc.