Ali Hoffman, a 2014 St. Thomas graduate, celebrated an icy day in Texas on Feb. 23 in the best way she and her family knew how – by making a video of themselves dancing to Bruno Mars’ hit song “Uptown Funk.”

With wintry conditions shutting the Dallas area down, it only seemed natural for the Hoffmans to express their happiness through dance.

“We were stuck in. Schools and offices were closed and roads closed,” Hoffman said. “My family loves to dance, and we decided to record the video at lunchtime for something to do since we were stuck inside, and I didn’t want to go out.”

Hoffman and her father, Michael, have made similar videos in the past to show family and friends in other parts of the country, but their most recent video has resonated with people across the world. The video had reached more than 10.2 million views, 78,000 likes and 230,000 shares on Facebook as of March 10.

“I’m pretty astounded at how many people have seen it,” Hoffman said. “I’m more amazed though at the Facebook messages from people all over the world, saying how much they like the video and see the father-daughter aspect and how special it is. I think it’s had so much publicity because it shows family having fun in the kitchen together.”

Making dance videos has been a favorite pastime in the Hoffman household. It dates back to Hoffman’s 18th birthday in 2008, when she and her father made their first video dancing to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Since going viral, the video has received attention from media outlets all across the country. Hoffman said she believes the joy and family love expressed in the dance make this video particularly popular.

“I think (the video) gives people permission to be goofy, and it gives people permission to relax and have fun,” she said. “It’s amazing what joy can do and what joy can bring to people. People are just seeing people being happy, and this world is so much bigger than all the darkness. Love conquers all.”

Senior Julia Mancuso agreed, crediting the video’s popularity to the family closeness and fun it showed.

“I think it’s Ali and her dad’s … comfort with themselves. They just let it out, and I think in our day, people don’t let that side of them show very often,” Mancuso said. “We’re a reserved society now, so it was refreshing to see.”

Senior John DeLozier said Hoffman’s gift of joy is why the video has taken off.

“She always emphasizes that she wants to spread joy to other people,” DeLozier said. “She has a great gift of compassion as well for other people, and so she wants to spread that too and kind of bring joy and light to a lot of people who don’t (have it).”

Hoffman hinted another video may be in the early stages of planning.

“We’re kind of trying to figure out the next song to dance to,” Hoffman said. “Meghan Trainor and Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake It Off’ are potential songs, but it’s hard to beat Bruno Mars. There could also be possible cameos in the video from other family members, but we will see.”

William Faust can be reached at faus5612@stthomas.edu.