SOMO News

MARYLAND HEIGHTS – The 17th Annual Maryland Heights Polar Plunge on Feb. 18 at Creve Coeur Lake was a splashing success, raising $65,147 to date. A total of 270 brave men and women from around the area donned disco-themed costumes and swimwear to take a chilly dip into Creve Coeur Lake. Their Reason for Freezin’… the athletes of Special Olympics Missouri (SOMO).

Online fundraising is still ongoing. Organizers of the plunge still hope to raise an additional $15,000 to reach the goal of $80,000. Donations can be made here.

“We had beautiful weather for our Plunge,” Plunge Coordinator Kellen Wolters said. “It was very exciting to watch our wonderful communities, schools and law enforcement agencies come together to raise money for our SOMO athletes.”

Top individual fundraisers included the following:

• 1^st Place Fundraiser – Meredith Absolon | Manchester Police Department
• Top Community Fundraising Team – Siemens: $1,897
• Top Law Enforcement Team – Town & Country Police Department: $5,036
• Top Fundraising School – Windsor High School: $4,540

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.

• Community Group 1^st Place – Hollywood Casino
• Community Group 2^nd Place – 1904 Labs
• Community Group 3^rd Place – ESPN
• Law Enforcement Group 1^st Place – St. Louis County Police Academy
• Law Enforcement Group 2^nd Place – Creve Coeur Police Department
• Law Enforcement Group 3^rd Place – Hazelwood Police Department
• School Group 1^st Place – Festus Middle School
• School Group 2^nd Place – Webster Groves High School
• School Group 3^rd Place – Windsor High School

This year’s event was held in conjunction with the Maryland Heights Police Department and the Hazelwood Police Department. Partners included: Special School District, Knights of Columbus, EStreetz, Southern Bus and Mobility, Am Vets Post 130, Hazelwood Fire Protection District, Pattonville Fire Protection District, and Premier Rentals

For more information about the Polar Plunge, visit www.somo.org/plunge.

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

Special Olympics Missouri

Special Olympics Missouri (SOMO) is a year-round program of sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Thousands of athletes participate in 16 Olympic-type sports throughout the state. SOMO provides people with intellectual disabilities continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, and experience joy as they participate in the sharing of gifts and friendship with their fellow athletes, their family and friends, and communities across Missouri.

SOMO is proud of our financial health, returning 78% of every dollar back to program services. We are privileged to be recognized with these honors: Better Business Bureau A+ Charity Accreditation, Guidestar Gold Level and Charity Navigator 4-star rating. Special Olympics was also recently named Morning Consult’s No. 4 most trusted nonprofit.

Thank you for trusting us with your donations, volunteer time and your goodwill.

Visit Special Olympics Missouri at www.somo.org. Engage with us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.