THUNDER BAY - For 16-year-old Paula Dominguez, who grew up in a small Spanish town on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, jumping into a hole in the ice of the coldest lake in the world isn’t exactly an opportunity that comes along every day.
But try explaining that to her parents.
“My parents were like: are you kidding?” Paula said. “My mother said: please, just don’t die.”
Paula, an exchange student at Westgate High School, was one of 150 brave souls who took the Thunder Bay Polar Bear Plunge at Prince Arthur’s Landing on Saturday.
After a year-long hiatus, the plunge was back in full force and this year organizers expect to raise more than $30,000 for three local charities that include Thunder Bay Special Olympics, the 2020 Special Olympic Games being hosted by Thunder Bay, and Roots to Harvest.
“We had a lot of concern last year when we didn’t host it,” said event coordinator, Warren Giertuga. “People wanted to do it and wanted to be part of it. It’s a fun, carnival like environment. People embrace it, school systems have been great and come and support it, and businesses come out and support it. It demonstrates Thunder Bay’s caring attitude toward charities.”
And while the water was cold, the temperature above the ice didn’t feel any better, with a cold wind whipping off the lake.
“We were hoping it would be a little bit warmer,” Giertuga said. “Ice conditions are a little challenging this year. We are still cutting the ice as it is now because it’s so thick. But we’ve overcome those obstacles and we have a nice hole there now.”
Erin Beagle, executive director at Roots to Harvest, said fundraisers like the Polar Bear Plunge allow them to expand their core programming while also investing in new programs.
And while donations are down slightly from past years the plunge has been held, Beagle said in true Thunder Bay fashion, people continued to give right up to taking the plunge.
“This is true Thunder Bay style,” she said. “We’ve had so many donations come in during the last couple of days, people still signing up still, everybody is really getting on board.”
Beagle and the team from Roots to Harvest, Frozen Peas, were jumping for the first time this year and Beagle said she was feeling a little nervous. For Giertuga, who has jumped many times in the past, it’s all about getting the adrenaline pumping.
“It’s a little intimidating at first,” he said. “But once you get in the water, it’s shocking, and then you are out and it’s really invigorating. The atmosphere is great. People are out cheering you on and the adrenaline gets going.”
For first time jumper, 11-year-old Harrison Petricig, who was part of the Three Amigos team of Carter Viera and Corbin Mozell, it was quite the shock hitting the water.
“When you jumped in you didn’t feel anything, but your body just froze,” he said.
But getting out of the water and into the wind was even harder.
“It hurt worse,” Harrison said.
For Paula, who said she already enjoys the cold weather and snow that Canada has to offer, getting up the nerve to jump took a bit of internal encouragement.
“This morning I was thinking: am I really going to do this?” she said. “I was like: okay, Paula, don’t think, just jump. It was cold. But I liked it. I thought it would be worse. But it wasn’t that bad.”
