It's time once again for the Coolest Event in Kentucky! The 2010 Polar Plunge season is right around the corner. This year six events are planned statewide. Plunges return to Lake Cumberland, Lexington, Louisville, Newport and Owensboro. And this year a new Plunge will be added in Western Kentucky.
The Plunge works just like a Walk-A-Thon. Sign up to participate, then raise money in support of your Plunge effort and when Plunge time comes, get the Chill of a Lifetime at any of the fun and festive Plunge sites. You can Plunge on your own, but it's more fun with a team and awards are presented for largest Corporate, School or Law Enforcement team!
To find out more about the Plunge nearest you, click the link below. You can sign up to participate and start raising money on-line right away!
For more information about the 2010 Polar Bear Plunges, contact Anna Beth Logan (Lake Cumberland, Lexington and Newport) or Candace Thompson (Louisville and Owensboro) at 800-633-7403, 502-695-8222 or via e-mail at ablogan@soky.org or cthompson@soky.org.
The 2009 Polar Bear Plunge season smashed all records for dollars raised in support of Special Olympics athletes. In all more than $510,000 was raised in 2009 with more than 1,800 people taking the Plunge.
The biggest gains in 2009 came at the Kentucky-Ohio Plunge, which jumped from a $65,000 event to a $98,000 event this year with almost 420 Polar Bears taking part. The Lexington Plunge, which returned to its former home at Texas Roadhouse also saw tremendous success, climbing from $65,000 to more than $90,000 this year. And while it may not have represented the biggest dollar amount raised, the Owensboro Plunge may have been the most amazing. Held, just two weeks after the ice storm that ripped through Kentucky and with almost half of the area still without power, the people of the Owensboro area came together to help raise more than $25,000 for Special Olympics during what had to have been a difficult time for everybody in the region.
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Members of the Kentucky Department of Corrections team hit the water at the Lexington Plunge. |
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Another great story to come out of the Plunges this year came from Louisville. Team Ice Socks, a fourth-year Plunge group led by Russell Miller, set a staggering goal of $31,000 for themselves this year. By the time Russell and his 41 fellow Ice Socks Polar Bears finished turning in money, their total was a whopping $39,396. The team was originally inspired by a story they had seen about Special Olympics Kentucky swimmer Kyle Gathoff. During this year's plunge the team finally got the opportunity to meet Kyle prior to jumping into the Ohio River.
As in years past, one lucky Polar Bear will get the opportunity to warm up on a Caribbean cruise courtesy of AAA Travel. This year is the first time that the winner has come from a Plunge other than the big event in Louisville. On Tuesday, March 3, Special Olympics athlete Phillip Riley pulled out the name of Henry "Waldo" Waldschmidt of the Hines Center in Owensboro who raised more than $2,300 for the Owensboro Plunge.
We want to thank everyone who made the Polar Bear Plunges such a success in 2009 — the sponsors, donors, volunteers and most importantly the Polar Bears.
For a recap of a specific Plunge and to see more photos, click on the city below.
Established in Louisville in February 1999 when more than 100 brrrrrave souls raised funds and made a splash into the Ohio river, this event has grown into a signature event across the country for the Special Olympics organization and it grows each year.
