DECATUR - Normally, Sarah Ballance is a quiet student who goes about her day with little fuss.

But when something stirs her heart, she makes herself heard.

That "something" was a fellow student at Studio B, where Sarah, a student at Thomas Jefferson Middle School, studies dance.

"A year or so ago, her wheelchair lift broke down and her mom threw out her back getting her into the van, so Studio B decided to have a dance-a-thon for her," Sarah said. "I thought I could get some money from TJ and get some kids to go from TJ."

Sarah made some posters and passed the word around school.

"They raised $16,790," Sarah said.

The fellow student is in a class for students with special needs. Though Sarah studies ballet, jazz, tap and lyrical dance and isn't in the same class, it worried her to think the family was having difficulty, and she wanted to help.

"My mom helped me a lot and (counselor Paula) Luckenbill helped," Sarah said.

The dance-a-thon went from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sarah said it was something like a school dance, with music playing and dancing and games going on.

Sarah's younger sister has Down syndrome, and Sarah is a volunteer with School for Therapeutic and Recreational Riding and also helps with the special-needs class at Studio B. Helping others is natural to her.

"I've been thinking about going into physical therapy," she said.

For Sarah to get involved in such a public display of involvement, by making posters and urging other students to attend the dance-a-thon, took some courage, said language arts teacher Lori Powers. Middle school is tough, and she might have had to endure a lot of ridicule.

"She did that without thinking about it because she was so committed to the cause," Powers said. "And when I found out how much they raised, I was amazed, because it wasn't a large group. It was just her dance class. So I was just thrilled that she was doing something for somebody else and that she stuck her neck out here to get the word out and get somebody else involved."

Valerie Wells can be reached at vwells@herald-review.com or 421-7982.