Shakopee Mdewakanton Dip 70 Employees in Ice Water for Special Olympics

Editor's note: The following is a press release from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.

Jumping into icy cold water in February in Minnesota isn’t something most folks would want to do, but 70 Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community employees raised $19,800 for Special Olympics by doing just that. The Polar Plunge Presented by Law Enforcement for Special Olympics Minnesota was held at Sand Point Beach on Prior Lake, February 16, 2013.

Nine teams from the SMSC tribal government gaming and non-gaming enterprises participated in the Plunge, raising funds to support Special Olympic athletes. The 13 members of the “Arctic Avengers,” employees of the Gaming Enterprise Player Development Department, raised $3,340. The largest group of jumpers was Playworks with 18 participants.

Each year 16 Polar Plunge events are held around Minnesota from January through March to raise funds. This was the 16^th year, though only the fourth year in Prior Lake. A total of 653 plungers participated, raising $120,164 for Special Olympics.

The Polar Bear Plunge is a unique opportunity for individuals, organizations, and businesses to support Special Olympics athletes by raising pledges and jumping into frigid Minnesota waters. Each plunger must raise at least $75 in donations in order to jump.

The first polar plunge took place in St. Paul at Como Lake in 1998 with 65 participants raising $20,000. By 2010, the Polar Bear Plunge took place in 13 different locations with more than 7,000 participants who raised $1.4 million. In 2012, more than 12,000 participants raised more than $2.8 million for Special Olympics Minnesota.

The SMSC has supported Special Olympics with charitable contributions for many years though this was the first time the SMSC employees volunteered to participate in the Polar Plunge.