Hospital supporters
ready to jump in the lake ... again!
by Tracey Coveart/The Scugog Standard

It started five years ago this January: the Auxiliary to Lakeridge Health Annual Port Perry Polar Plunge in the icy waters of Lake Scugog. And it’s grown to be one of the auxiliary’s biggest annual hospital money makers as well as a beloved tradition for Port Perry’s fearless fundraisers and their fanatical fans.
_In the first four years of the event, 127 individual plunges - many of them by repeat performers - raised $49,000 for much-needed hospital equipment, and organizers are hoping 2012 will be the best year yet for plungers and pledges.
_“Judy Anderson is a polar plunge veteran and one of a small number of plungers who have been ‘freezin’ for a reason’ every year we have been hosting the event,” said auxiliary member and plunge organizer Mary Jane Inglis. “Judy has braved the icy waters every year, consistently bringing in more than $1,000 in pledges.”
_She will be back in the frigid waters of Lake Scugog again this Saturday, Jan. 14.
_“Yep. I’m going in again,” she tells me. “You’ve done it before. (Three times.) You know what it’s like.
_“So what brings us back each year? I love the look on peoples’ faces when I mention jumping into a cold lake in January. I don’t have to say much. They start looking uncomfortable, imagining going in themselves.”
_That thought is generally enough to exact a donation to the cause. Better to dig into your wallet than dip into the lake.
_Doug Brown of Shoppers, Tony Kaschahub of Progressive Electric and Dr. Dwayne Hooper, a medical acupuncturist at Your Health Chiropractic in Port Perry, are also soon-to-be five-timers.
_Five years ago, Dr. Hooper saw the polar plunge as an opportunity to support the community, and in particular the local hospital. “Knowing that our local hospital is always under scrutiny,” he says, “I believe every effort we can make to support it financially and to improve its services will help to ensure it’s security here in Port Perry.”
_The plunging experience, according to Dr. Hooper, varies from year to year depending on weather and ice conditions.
_“The first year was mild and the obstacle was more of a mental challenge. Because there was no ice, we actually had to wade out into the waters,” he recalls. “Other years there has been ice on the lake and snow on the ground. I always walk down beforehand and take a look at the waterfront. It’s a bit intimidating but you have to face the proverbial giant.”
_When the plungers are called to the lake, “the experience of leaving the heated bus and walking down the path to the waterfront is exciting. The nervousness kind of melts away. There’s a real energy in the air and with the crowd cheering you on, you kind of feel like Rocky Balboa heading into the ring. There’s no thought of turning back.”
_Each plunger has his or her own, particular style. Some ease their way in. Dr. Hooper prefers to jump out and commit himself to a sudden plunge.
_“The truth is, the water isn’t all that bad,” he says. “Don’t get me wrong, it is cold - but that’s to be expected. The real shock is when you rise up out of the water and that -20 degree air hits you. It truly takes your breath away. But it’s not until you head back to the bus that the numbness starts to set in. The worst part is your feet. It takes a couple hours before they start to feel warm and normal again.”
_So what keeps people like Judy, Doug, Tony and Dwayne coming back each year?
_Judy is a retired Red Cross Instructor, so water sports, she says “are right up my alley. Of course, all of my training went out the window with the opportunity to subject myself to a dunk in frigid water on a freezing winter’s day!”
_But the other reason Judy - who has already raised $1,200 in pledges this year - makes the plunge an annual event, is because “I wonder who will ask the 100 people I got donations from if I don’t? I ask people in every group I belong to, to sponsor me and support our hospital. I make a point of asking as many of the curlers at the Port Perry Curling Club as I can. I go to the club when I know people will be coming off the ice even if it is too early for my game. My greatest support comes from these curlers who know about having fun in the cold!”
_For Dr. Hooper, it’s personal.
_“We had all three of our kids in Port Perry and we’re heading back for our fourth in April,” he says. “The experience has been amazing and I’m just glad to be able to support the hospital in a small way to show my gratitude for the wonderful care we have received from doctors, nurses and support staff there. We are so privileged to have such an incredible resource here in town.”
_Plus, adds Dr. Hooper, who has plunged three times as a skeleton and last year in a pair of bright red one-piece fleece pajamas, “it’s a great way to start out the year!”
_Others might disagree. Those are the folks - like Standard Publisher and Managing Editor Rik Davie - who prefer to cheer the plungers on or document the event for posterity.
_“While we’ve always done everything we can at The Standard to support the hospital and the auxiliary,” said Mr. Davie, who has been on the ice to shoot the plunge, “I have declined to go in the water - and will continue to do so - until someone can prove to me that snapping turtles hibernate.”
_Scugog Regional Councillor Bobbie Drew, pictured on the cover of this newspaper, is ready to take her fourth icy dip in Lake Scugog - this year dressed as a doctor.
_“People have been telling me for years to go jump in a lake,” laughs Councillor Drew. “Now they’re paying me to do it!”
_Whether they love the challenge, the roar of the crowd, the camaraderie or just a little mid-winter excitement, all plungers share one common goal: to support the local hospital and the members of the local hospital auxiliary who work tirelessly to make sure Lakeridge Health Port Perry has the equipment it needs to save lives. Our lives and the lives of our loved ones.
_“The auxiliary does a wonderful job of both supporting the hospital with practical services and by fundraising,” says Dr. Hooper. “It’s because of the efforts of people like this that we have such a wonderful hospital here in Port Perry. As a community, we need to show our appreciation and provide our financial support. The auxiliary and the people who pledge us to plunge are the real stars of this annual event.”