When I came on staff with CCAN in October, I knew that I was going to be working my tail off to pass the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act in the 2012 legislative session. I expected the late night strategy sessions and the phone banking and the petitioning. I did not, however, expect that I would also be jumping (all the way) into the icy Potomac in January. That definitely was not in the job description. And yet, on January 21st, myself and around 100 others charged into the frigid waters wearing (in most cases) little more than a bathing suit. Watch this video to get the full effect.
The journey of my first Polar Bear Plunge started in November, when I began explaining to friends and family that I wanted them to sponsor this act of insanity. Needless to say, many of these conversations were amusing, but it also gave me a great opportunity to talk to people about climate change and why this issue is something I am so passionate about, that I am willing to freeze half to death for it.
Those of us in the climate movement know it has certainly been an uphill battle, and even though we’ve been battered around, we keep getting up and fighting because we know what is at stake. At CCAN, we tend to work long hours, push the envelope and go the extra mile and a half it takes to fight climate change. We don’t back down. Given that, it makes sense that instead of conventional fundraising methods, our biggest fundraiser of the year entails jumping in to the Potomac in January.
The day of the Polar Bear Plunge, I was skeptical and nervous. It was sleeting a “wintry mix” that morning and I received several good-natured texts from my sponsors and friends about the weather and hypothermia. Ha. Ha. It was with trepidation that I stripped down to my bathing suit and approached the beach. The crowed hummed with the energy and excitement of what we were all about to do. We counted down from three and then ran, screaming, into the water. I remember feeling very cold and then numb. When I came ashore (after locating my towel: priority number one), I was on a complete adrenaline high and felt like I could take on the world.
The rush and the feeling of community that resulted from those five minutes makes me almost look forward to next year’s Plunge. Almost.
