THON.

Just saying the word is enough to give folks chills. Thousands of people rush to the Bryce Jordan Center every year to support fundraising efforts for children with pediatric cancer. Some might say that every dancer to come through the Bryce Jordan Center gates was born to THON.

Yet with hundreds of people dancing every year, and many doing tremendous things outside of the THON universe, was anyone truly put on the earth to THON? Well here’s a list of four people who, from birth, were meant to be on the floor dancing at some point in their lives.

Thon Maker

For all of you NBA 2K players out there, I am sure you’ve had your fair share of controllers through your TV because of this dude. While in real life, people have found a way to stop 7’1″ dudes from South Sudan, in video games not so much.

Thon Maker spent time in the NBA with the Bucks, Pistons, Cavaliers, and the Nets. His height gave him endless potential in the basketball world, but sadly he did not live up to his first-round draft pick in 2016. Despite this, just look at his name, he has to make a THON appearance at some point, right?

Dickie Thon

Another professional athlete but this time on the baseball diamond (you know like THON), Dickie Thon is a former MLB shortstop. Wearing No. 10, he primarily played for the Houston Astros. He played well over 1000 games recording 1176 and 71 home runs in that time.

Jonnathan Thon

We won’t lie to you folks, this may be a random guy we found on LinkedIn. While he is not famous, his achievements mean just as much as the next guy. Johnnathan Thon, yes, I spelled that right graduated from The Art Institute of California San Francisco in 2017 and has since stayed in the Bay Area.

He now works as an audio-visual technician for IATSE LOCAL 16, where he has been for five years. Jonnathan, if you are reading this, please make the trip out to State College next year for THON 2026.

Konstantin Thon

While Konstantin Thon is no longer alive, I am sure he would have come to Happy Valley every year for THON Weekend if he could of. The Russian architect lived during the early 19th century with his greatest works including the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the Grand Kremlin Palace, and the Kremlin Armoury in Moscow.