The seventh annual Polar Plunge for Special Olympics was a success before the first plunger hit the icy water Jan. 20.
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Chatham-Kent police Sgt. Jason Herder, the lead organizer, said this year’s event was unique because 100 per cent of the proceedings will go to the 2024 provincial Special Olympics School Championship Games, returning to Chatham-Kent for the first time in 27 years.
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The organizing team was tasked with raising $200,000 of the $400,000 needed to host the games in 13 months, along with organizing the June event.
“This is a challenge most organizations are given two to three years to complete,” he added.
The plunge raised an “unbelievable” $70,000, Herder announced Jan. 22, bringing the fundraising total for the 2024 games to $373.00 in eight months.
“Once again, that shows our community’s dedication, perseverance and commitment to one another,” Herder said.
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“I can’t wait for the show that we are going to put on for our 1,000 Special Olympics athletes that are coming from across the province to Chatham-Kent this June,” he added.
Looking back to when the Polar Plunge for Special Olympics started, Herder said the first event had 36 plungers, “most of whom I had to beg to join.”
He said the first plunge raised $14,400, and seven years later, it has raised more than $280,000 and counting for Special Olympics Ontario, including two years of virtual events with only online fundraising during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mayor Darrin Canniff put up $1,000 of his own money to take the plunge, if it was matched by those in the crowd Jan. 20. It was matched, including another $1,000 by Winmar Property Restoration Specialists in Chatham.
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Canniff didn’t disappoint, giving a shark costume to take the plunge.
“This a great event and I can’t wait to see how organizers showcase our community with the Special Olympics School Championship Games come here in June,” the mayor said.
This year’s plunge saw the most people register with more than 200 people taking the plunge, up from 160 last year, Herder said.
Ashley Campbell with the Underground Fit Club said she was among a few people from the Blenheim location who initially planned to take part. That soon grew to 20, who together raised more than $1,000.
“It’s pretty cool, it’s pretty awesome,” Campbell said of her team’s effort.
Jessica Cassidy, of Chatham, decided to take the plunge and talked her dad, Tim Cassidy, into coming along.
“I answered the phone and all I heard was a sweet ‘dad,’ and that’s what did it,” Tim Cassidy said.
“Of course, I had to call my brother,” he added, bringing Mike Cassidy from Gurnee, Ill., to be part of their pirate-themed Shiver Me Timbers team.
“The first time, I hung up,” Mike Cassidy joked. “I’ve done it before, but it was when I was ice-fishing. I fell through the ice.”
When asked supporting the cause, Jessica Cassidy said, “It’s kind of nice to donate to something that will actually be in the community that we can see.”
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