Schools
Students Have Raised More Than $112K for Plunge
Broadneck High School students are among those raising thousands of dollars for the Maryland Special Olympics.
More than 2,000 students across Anne Arundel County passed a donation milestone Wednesday, having raised $112,000 in pledges for the upcoming .
Regional assistant superintendent, and fellow plunger, Chris Truffer made the announcement Wednesday, saying he was ecstatic for the results.
"I think it's fantastic," Truffer said. "Having 2,000 students representing the county in an event like this is just awesome."
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Schools that have participated this year include Arundel High, South River High, , Severna Park High, North County High and Old Mill High schools.
On Saturday at 8 a.m., thousands of Marylanders will plunge into the icy depths of the Chesapeake Bay for charity, at Sandy Point State Park in Broadneck.
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The 16th annual Plunge Fest, hosted by the Maryland State Police, benefits the Maryland Special Olympics. Last year the combined efforts of the Anne Arundel County School System raised $109,000 for the benefit, which made up the lion's share of the total $208,000 raised for the event.
The schools participate through the Cool Schools program, which pools resources among schools for the benefit. At noon Friday, there will be a special, early plunge into the Bay for schools, called Frigid Friday.
Last January the Anne Arundel County School System led the way in fundraising at the second annual Frigid Friday Plunge, a dip designed exclusively for high school and middle school students in Maryland that took place at Sandy Point State Park in AA County. Whether it was home-pool advantage or just the pride of edging out the competition in an event that took place right in these students’ backyard, the result was the same – a great effort by the 12 Anne Arundel County public and private schools, that raised over $109,000 for Special Olympics Maryland.
Held the day before the traditional MSP Polar Bear Plunge, the Frigid Friday Plunge is open only to students from high schools and middles schools throughout Maryland, offering them an exclusive experience that can more easily accommodate large groups of students. By limiting this event to just school teams the students enjoy the spotlight for a day, and it also makes for easier transportation, parking and crowd control and offers all of the Plunge fun but in an alcohol-free environment. The 3rd Annual Frigid Friday Plunge is expected to host as many as 4,000 students from around the region.