 Well, down in Brainerd, there's a group of students who spent the past two days in the weight room at Brainerd High School in all for a good cause. Clayton Castle takes us to the annual Sertoma Sunrise Lift-a-thon. The Brainerd High School weight room was packed with lifters the past two days for the 28th annual Sertoma Sunrise Club's Lift-a-thon, an event that raises money for charitable causes in the Brainerd area. The money raised, 80 percent of it goes back to local charities and 20 percent of it goes to scholarships, t-shirts and weight room needs. 120 students participate in this year's edition of the Lift-a-thon, including Ellen Hickman, a scholarship winner of the past two Lift-a-thons. She says weight lifting has helped her grow as a person, both physically and mentally. Lift made me a stronger person physically as well as mentally. It's given me confidence inside and out to the outside of the weight room to do other things and be successful in life. The Lift-a-thon also gives students a chance to shatter lifting records, whether a school record or their own record. 285 last year on bench, 405 on squat and 285 on clean. But at the heart of the event it's about getting students interested in volunteerism, helping others in need. It means a lot to me. I mean you get to help a lot of people in the community, the money you donate. This is an event that's designed to get them to broaden their mind and know that every community needs help. Every community has people in need, maybe people that are less fortunate than they are, and this is an easy way for them to step in and get involved in that volunteer. In years past, the event has raised over $10,000 for local causes in the Brainerd area. Reporting in Brainer Clayton Castle, Lakeland News. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.