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A group of people representing the Mt. Vernon Police Department and St. Mary’s Parochial School splash into South Sandusky Beach during the 2010 Polar Plunge. RORYE O’CONNOR/REGISTER-NEWS
Record turnout takes part in Polar Plunge
By RORYE O’CONNOR
rorye.oconnor@register-news.com
BENTON — A record number of people gathered at South Sandusky Beach to take the Polar Plunge.
Dressed in everything from standard swimsuits and flip flops to plush shark suits, fundraisers gathered their resolve and jumped into uncomfortably cold waters for the tenth annual Law Enforcement Torch Run Polar Plunge to benefit Special Olympics Illinois Areas 14 and 15.
367 plungers raised more than $66,000 for Areas 14 and 15, said Jo Dodd, Special Olympics Illinois Area 15 Director.
“This is great,” she said. “I love the support of the community on this.”
The funds raised provide services to approximately 1,500 athletes in the southern Illinois area, said Rhonda Knight, Area 14 director.
“We have to raise everything we spend,” she said. “That’s why it’s so vital to use to have such a huge turnout.”
Teams and individuals raised at least $75 to take the plunge.
With a water temperature of 39 degrees, the water was warmer than last year, Knight said, but the air temperature was colder.
Plungers had different tactics for staying as warm as possible during their dash into the water.
“You’re better out than in,” said Mt. Vernon Police Department Assistant Police Chief Chris Deichman, after taking his seventh plunge. “You just can’t breathe when you’re in there.”
Deichman and five other representatives from MVPD joined some students from St. Mary’s Parochial School to participate in the plunge.
Jody Goetting of Pinckneyville, took his ninth plunge as an individual during Saturday’s midday event.
“Run like hell when you get out of the water,” Goetting advised. “Coming out of the water is so much worse than going into it.”
The ultimate goal for many plungers, once in the water, was to reach a diver from the Rend Lake Search and Rescue Dive Team and give them a high five.
Goetting, who dressed as a caveman as a nod toward the event sponsor, Geico, said he’s been involved with Special Olympics for 30 years as a referree and volunteer.
“I believe so much in what Special Olympics is all about,” he said. “When you see people participating for the love of the sport rather than winning, it is so humbling.”
Knight said it was a pleasure to have a record turnout for the Polar Plunge.
“It is just so exciting that we have so many people out there willing to support our athletes,” she said.
For more information on Special Olympics Illinois events, visit the Web site at http://www.ilso.org or contact Area 14 Director Rhonda Knight at (618) 378-2131 or rknight@-soill.org.
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