[ad_1]
Showing all smiles, before their dip into wintery cold water at the 2023 Buffalo Polar Plunge, are (from left): Haley Fenik, Savannah Salim, Dr. Janeil Rey, Alexis Adamski, Holly Rohrbach, Dr. Michael Jabot, Alexandrea Simmons, Kennedy Neckers and McKenzie Lohmer.
An intrepid team of State University of New York at Fredonia students and professors did what most of us would never do – jump into a Western New York lake in late December – by joining the 2023 Buffalo Polar Plunge to raise money for the New York Special Olympics.
“It was super fun! We grew and had a bonding experience with our peers and professors and we raised money for a great cause,” reports Kennedy Neckers, a senior from Livonia, majoring in Early Childhood and Childhood Education.
A lot of money!
The Fredonia Future Teachers Polar Plunge team raised a hefty $1,165 from 37 donors, easily topping their $1,000 goal. Pledges by fellow students, faculty and family members ranged from $15 to $125.
This group of fearless Fredonians was among hundreds of teams from high schools and colleges, along with teams of first responders as well as corporate and community groups, who summoned the courage needed to leap into the chilly water – enduring what probably felt like an agonizing long 1-1/2 to 2 minutes – at Woodlawn Beach State Park, near Buffalo on Saturday, Dec. 2.
Student participants – members of the Teacher Education Club or Council for Exceptional Children, both campus groups – were McKenzie Lohmer, Alexandrea Simmons, Alexis Adamski, Savannah Salim, Holly Rohrbach, Haley Fenik and Neckers. Valiantly taking the plunge with them were College of Education, Health Sciences, and Human Services Dean Janeil Rey and SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Michael Jabot.
Storybook characters were the theme of their handmade costumes and included the Very Hungry Caterpillar, Cat in the Hat and Pete the Cat, among others. “They were warm before we got in the water, but not so much after,” remarked Neckers, president of the Council for Exceptional Children. She and Simmons was at the helm of the SUNY Fredonia team, serving as co-captains.
Simmons, a senior from Springville, majoring in Early Childhood and Childhood Education, wasn’t too sure how the plunge would be received when she introduced it as a project for the student groups to undertake. “I was afraid that it wasn’t going to pan out, so I was definitely happy with the amount of people we had.”
Neckers and Simmons thank everyone who donated, as well as everyone who took the plunge, and hope SUNY Fredonia will assemble another team for next year’s plunge.
[ad_2]
Source link