Virtual plunge Special Olympics Maryland surpasses end-of-year $300K goal

Crofton High School art teacher Kyler Kamp's first Polar Bear Plunge Dec. 20 was unique, as the Special Olympics' 25th year of the fundraiser was forced online by the coronavirus pandemic.

Kamp was a part of the Cool Schools Plunge challenge on the Crofton High team and decided to jump in the water at a beach in the Arden on the Severn community.

"I spend lots of time here year-round with my family, so it was fitting to have my inaugural plunge here at a special place on the Severn River," Kamp said.

While she chose to plunge at the community beach, others have posted their virtual plunges, having buckets dumped on their heads and more fun takes on the challenge that normally would be a gathering of people jumping in the cold bay at Sandy Point State Park.

"We have had some people who utilized the snow and had some fun ideas like being pulled on a sled by a tractor, or doing a slip and slide into an icy snowy bath at the end, to a cul-de-sac plunge that included a whole team plunging together socially distanced," said Kira Northrop, director of media for Special Olympics Maryland.

Kamp is one of 1,903 virtual plungers who have registered so far since the challenge began Dec. 8 and Special Olympics has raised $377,293.29, surpassing its $300,000 end-of-year goal. In comparison, by the end of last year, Special Olympics Maryland had raised $436,301.

Their goal is also to have a Virtual Plunger for every one of their 8,716 athletes across the state.

Kamp decided to plunge this year because of a special educator at Crofton High, Lauren Marriner, who encouraged her and her students to participate. Kamp only expected to raise the $50 to sign up, but she has raised $211.

Even though Kamp was the only one to get in the water, she had several friends from the neighborhood there on the beach cheering her on.

Kamp enjoyed the plunge being virtual because she could do it when she wanted and was able to avoid the long bus ride they would have to do every year.

"However, the excitement and camaraderie of crowds with this type of event is something I miss. When large groups of people gather for a good cause, the joy can be contagious," Kamp said. "I'm happy that the Special Olympics has been able to adapt the event for our current circumstance."

Some of the plunges can be found on Special Olympics Maryland's YouTube channel. And its website has a leaderboard for each of the distinct plunges: Super Plunge, Corporate Plunge, Police Plunge and Maryland Plunge.

The virtual plunge runs through Jan. 31.

Caption: Omar Hassan, from left, Luca Smith, Ian Patzman and Lucas Traver sprint into Chesapeake Bay on Dec. 23, performing their polar bear plunge at Sandy Point State Park.

Brian Krista/Capital Gazette

Courtesy Photo