Lansing Polar Plunge raises $65K for Special Olympics Michigan
LANSING — Hundreds of attendees and plungers gathered at Jackson Field for the 19th Lansing Polar Plunge on Sunday, coming out to support Special Olympics Michigan.
Held at the home stadium of the Lansing Lugnuts, families and individuals from around Mid-Michigan showed up on an uncharacteristically sunny winter day following a long cold freeze that would leave even the most seasoned plungers shivering.
“Mother Nature cooperated,” said Darin Southworth, chief deputy of the Ingham County Sheriff’s Office.
According to Southworth, more than 200 participants registered for the plunge. The event raised about $65,000 to support Special Olympics Michigan.
Special Olympics Michigan is a group that provides year-round sports training and athletic competition for Michigan residents with intellectual disabilities. The program has more than 23,000 participants and a similar number of volunteers, along with nearly 3,000 certified coaches.
Southworth said that the organization serves about 4,500 people in the tri-county area of Ingham, Eaton and Clinton.
Sunday’s plunge is part of a series across the state. In 2022, the series raised over $2 million.
Mandi Beasinger, a sergeant with the Lansing Police Department, said the event started with just 17 plungers nearly 20 years ago.
Derick Zanger, a coach for Special Olympics, said that it was his eighth year taking the plunge.
“It's a band of brothers kind of deal, where everybody's coming in, they know it's going to be uncomfortable, but they know it's for a good cause,” he said. “You see all this money raised for Special Olympics to make sure our athletes and unified partners and coaches can do these amazing experiences at no charge to them. It's a huge deal for everybody.”
Zanger was dressed as Mario with a cast of other iconic Nintendo characters. Attendees showed up ready to plunge in wacky outfits, including the Abominable Snowman, a dalmatian and Santa Claus.
“They're our friends, our family, our brothers, our sisters, our neighbors,” Southworth said about the event’s attendees. “And you know, a lot of special people make a sacrifice to make this happen for them.”
Contact Sheldon Krause at skrause@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @sheldonjkrause.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Lansing Polar Plunge raises $65,000 for Special Olympics Michigan
