Just over two dozen individuals were freezin for a reason Saturday afternoon at Lake Minnewasta for the return of the Polar Plunge in support of Special Olympics Manitoba. Organized by the Law Enforcement Torch Run, Morden Police Sergeant Scott Edwards is part of the local committee which brought the event back for the first time since 2020. The Morden event was moved to Lake Minnewasta this year, and held alongside a pond hockey tournament happening at the same time.
"It was awesome," said Edwards shortly after he took his own plunge into the chilly water. "We were fortunate to partner with Winterfest in the past at the Access Event Centre, but just the atmosphere out here with the pond hockey, and all the people gathered around, and to do it in the lake, like a true polar plunge, you couldn't ask for anything better."
And was there a difference between jumping into Lake Minnewasta versus the usual metal tank used in previous years?
"It was probably a mindset thing, it messed with your mind a little bit more," explained Edwards when comparing the two. "The tank was a pretty controlled environment, and there were stairs that you could walk your way out, but this is an actual hole in the middle of the lake. This is the real deal. It definitely played mind games a bit with you, but the support of everyone around was just remarkable."
Morden Chiropractic Centre's Maike Scharrer and Tracy Knutt jumped for the second time at a Polar Plunge event, and together raised just over $2,100 for athletes with intellectual disabilities in the Winkler, Altona and Morden area.
"It feels amazing just to be part of a group that can raise money for such a special organization, and it felt amazing jumping into the water," said Scharrer who noted they had a lot of supporters in the crowd of a couple hundred watching. "Our office was here, our bosses were here, most of our chiropractors showed up to come watch us, and some of our patients showed up. Our best friends, our families, it was great."
Knutt had similar sentiments as Edwards regarding the difference between plunging into a tank and diving into the lake.
"It was a bit more nerve ranking jumping in first, because I really didn't want to jump, because it was so cold," said Knutt with a laugh when thinking about being the first of the participants to jump Saturday afternoon.
And what would she say to encourage those who haven't Polar Plunged to give it a try?
"You only live once, and I'm very happy I've done this twice," said Knutt. "Special Olympics has a special place in my heart. My sister is disabled, so helping people out to follow their dreams is amazing."
Final numbers are still coming in, but Edwards estimates around $10,000 was raised, with that money supporting athletes with intellectual disabilities in the Morden, Winkler and Altona areas. The top fundraising team was the Crappie Crew.
"We're pleased with the numbers that came out, and saw a lot of similar faces we saw three years ago in 2020," he noted. "Very, very happy with the numbers, and hopefully with this event growing in the future we can bring in more interest and more people to take part in it."
Check out all the fun from the Polar Plunge in the video below, and also listen to CFAM Radio 950 Morning Show Co-host Chris Sumner's conversation with Tracy, Maike and Scott.