SOMO News

CHILLICOTHE – The 18th Annual Polar Plunge on February 1st at Simpson Park was a splashing success, raising $7,700 to date. A total of 22 brave men, and women from around the area donned costumes and swimwear to take a chilly dip into freezin’ water. Their Reason for Freezin’ was the athletes of Special Olympics Missouri (SOMO).

Online fundraising is still ongoing. Organizers of the Plunge still hope to raise an additional $2,300 to reach the goal of $10,000. Donations can be made at PlungeMO.org and choose Chillicothe Plunge.

“It was a great day for a plunge not too cold and I want to thank everyone for supporting Special Olympics,” said Plunge Coordinator Melody Prawitz.

Top individual fundraisers:

• 1^st Place Fundraiser- Decker Rardon

Top team fundraisers:

• 1^st Place Fundraiser -Chillicothe Correctional Center

Competition for the Golden Plunger was steep this year. Participants were encouraged to come in costume and compete for the chance to take home the “Golden Plunger.”

• Group 1^st Place – Chillicothe High School

SOMO was lucky to have Charlie Phillips, Plunge Ambassador help with this event. He is a SOMO athlete, and he worked for months to help spread awareness of the Plunge!

This year’s event was held in conjunction with Chillicothe Correctional Center.

For more information about the Polar Plunge, visit PlungeMO.org.

Media is welcome to download and use any pictures from our Flickr page.

Please Note: Polar Plungers are asked to fill out our post-event survey here!