Skiers in winter weather gear slide down the slopes as teams from area high schools jumped into an icy pool at Montage Mountain Resorts.
They plunged for Special Olympics Pennsylvania (SOPA).
"I thought it'd be fun to just experienced this," said a very chilly Macie Kilmer, an eighth grader from Lakeland High School. Macie painted her face in Lakeland’s colors. The blue and red paint stayed despite the plunge.
Two groups of 55 Lakeland students and staff were first to take the Cool Schools Plunge on Friday, kicking off the two-day inaugural Northeast Polar Plunger. In total, around 100 adults and students were registered to brave the cold water.
Polar Plunges are one of SOPA’s largest fundraisers and help ensure that the 13,000 athletes from around the state have access to year-round sports, health and leadership programming free of charge, according to the organization. The money raised from plunges in the Northeast Region will provide athletes in the region with funds for travel, uniform purchases, equipment and more.
Ahead of the plunge, Lakeland raised $4,000 for SOPA — the most of any school. The district in Lackawanna County began a unified track team last year. On unified teams, students with and without disabilities compete in various sports.
"We really wanted to give back if we were able," said Lakeland social worker Nikki Zaleski.
She also jumped in. Zaleski was nervous at first. She was picturing Jack and Rose from the movie Titanic.
"You probably had to pull more teeth with staff than students, they were all about it," she said.
On unified sports teams and in unified clubs, students in special education programs gain a sense of belonging, said Zaleski. On the flip side, general education students gain insight into what their special education peers go through.
"Learning ... that empathy and patience and you know, tolerance, all of those things," she said. "So really across the board, it helps all of our students.”
The polar plunge continues with an all-ages event on Saturday, Jan. 27. Check-in and in-person registration for the plunge begins at noon, followed by opening ceremonies at 1:30 p.m. Plunging begins at 2 p.m. at Montage Mountain Resorts, 1000 Montage Mountain Road, Scranton.
For more details, visit NortheastPlunge.org
