Duane Hicks
Some 44 jumpers made a big splash in Sand Bay in the name of charity on New Year’s Day—grossing $16,394 in pledges for the Voyageur Lions Club’s annual “Polar Plunge.”
Club past-president Bill Michl was elated with the event, which was the second-most successful “Polar Plunge” here since its inception in 2001.
“It was good weather. Great crowd, too,” noted Michl, who jumped into the icy waters along with Voyageur Lions’ president Dale Gill and fellow club members Wayne Lundstrom and Eric Blondin.
As in past years, proceeds were split between various local groups and the Voyageur Lions, although the Emo and District Lions Club, which alone raised more than $4,000, got to keep all of its funds.
Michl said the Voyageur Lions help the community in numerous ways, ranging from donations to La Verendrye Hospital and the local Salvation Army food bank to helping individuals get glasses and hearing aids, as well as buying a special bicycle for a blind girl.
First-time jumper Randy DeGagne, who teamed up with Rev. Barb Miller to raise $2,586 for the Knox United Church “Renewal Project,” said collecting pledges and doing the plunge was “a fun way to get people engaged, to be get excited about the rebuild.”
“Barb, our minister, said she’d go, and after a week or two, I said, ‘Well, you can’t go by yourself so I’ll go with you,’” noted DeGagne, who is chairman of the church council.
“We raised over $2,500,” he added. “That’s a lot of money—half of that goes towards our rebuilding.”
DeGagne admitted the actual jump was “almost anti-climactic.”
“I was really nervous about it but it wasn’t near as bad as I thought,” he remarked.
“I think with the warmer temperature this year, even when you got out of the water it wasn’t crazy cold.”
Isaac Firth, who raised $260 for the Emo & District Lions Club, also was a first-time jumper.
“My dad [Stuart] is 65 and this is his fourth year doing it, so I figured if he can do, I can do it,” the younger Firth said while enjoying chili and hot chocolate upstairs at La Place Rendez-Vous afterwards.
“It something we can do together—father and son,” he added.
Firth said being outside on the ice on New Year’s Day, with a cold west wind, certainly woke him up.
“I was more excited to get in the water because I was colder standing and waiting,” he noted, adding that once he got out the water, he also was in a hurry to get inside to warm up.
Firth said the entire experience was “exciting” and urged others to take the plunge.
“It’s a great cause,” he remarked.
Yet another new “plunger” was Cindy Manty, who raised $360 while jumping for the Valley Adult Learning Association.
“It’s a bucket-list item,” she explained. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do since Grade 5.
“I’ve burnt the box so I’m doing all these things now,” chuckled Manty when asked why she decided to jump in the icy waters on New Year’s Day.
Manty said the cold was the least of her concerns.
“I’m terrified of crowds,” she confessed with a smile. “That was worse than the water.”
Having broken the ice, so to speak, Manty said she’s “definitely” going to take part in “Polar Plunge” next Jan. 1 and she’s already decided on a cause to support—although she’s not saying until then.
But Manty said her choice to jump for VALA this time was an easy one.
“I take classes there so I wanted to pay it forward what they do for me,” she reasoned.
“That’s what it’s about.”
As for anyone out there undecided about whether to take the plunge, Manty urged them to go for it.
“Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it,” she said.
Brianna Eldridge, participating in the “Polar Plunge” for the second time, raised $350 in support of the Church of the Holy Spirit.
“[The church] is trying to raise money for ‘Bicycles for Humanity’ and I just wanted to help them out with that,” she explained.
“It’s a really good cause.”
Eldridge, who earned third place for best costume, said she wasn’t at all afraid to take the plunge this year—and also encouraged others to give it a shot.
Her only advice? “Stay warm before you jump because once you get out there, it’s cold.”
Knox United Church was the top fundraising group, garnering $2,586 for its “renewal” project.
A team from Rainycrest Long-term Care, consisting of Nicole Gray, Naomi Danco, Russell Peterson, and Darryl Galusha, had the second-highest group total, raising $2,022 altogether.
Coming in third were Fort High Grade 9 students Shelby King and Ryann Scott, who raised $1,100 for the Rainy River District Women’s Shelter of Hope in Atikokan.
Cristian Windego, dressed as horror movie icon Freddy Krueger, won first prize for having the best costume.
He got $185 in pledges for the Voyageur Lions Club.
Laura Cochrane, who jumped for the Border Figure Skating Club along with Jamie Spencer, took second place for best costume.
That duo raised $635 in all.
Meanwhile, Fort High students Erika Handberg, Dany Michaud, Shawn Brady, Ian Jodoin, Graeme Kitt, Cameron Penney, and Cameron Gushulak together raised $1,000, half of which will go to a school trip to Montreal.
Ashley Payne, Jorja Caldwell, and Maren Scott raised $731.50 in taking the plunge in support of the Fort Frances Public Library Technology Centre while Dan Hettinga and Jake Esselink of God’s Great Outdoors together raised $490.
Bryanna Dustin and Nadia Webb jumped for Kidsports, raising $434.50, while Kerry Zub, Terry McMahon, and Charity McMahon together raised $325 in support of the United Native Friendship Centre here.
Clara Collier raised $430 for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Taeah Park raised $138 for the Salvation Army, Stuart Kabatay raised $100 for Mitaanjigaming Hockey, and Jacob Perusse raised $30 for Ontario Special Olympics.
Meanwhile, two local Lions Clubs raised big bucks for their respective organizations.
Michl, Lundstrom, Blondin, and Gill raised $1,557.35 in all for the host club.
And as noted, the Firths, along with Dee Drombolis, Danette MacIntyre, Joanne Ogden, Riley Ogden, and Dennis Ogilvie, together raised more than $4,000 for the Emo & District Lions.
Instead of T-shirts, participants who raised a sufficient amount of pledges this year got a “Polar Plunge” toque made by Diana’s Needle Art & Embroidery.
Voyageur Lion and 93.1 The Border radio personality Jonathan Price emceed the event.
