Polar Plunge '96

Garson Ho
EUSS VP Events

The Polar Plunge, the annual EUSS fundraiser for the Variety Club of BC, was another big success this year! In spite of the cold weather and icy conditions of the AQ Reflection Pond, we had over 70 dunkings, including the Director of the School of Engineering Science, Albert Leung.

This was the 7th year we've had this event, and every year, we've managed to raise more money than the previous year. It was no exception this time, as the students and faculty of SFU generously opened their hearts and wallets to the Children of BC, donating $2635 to better last year's total by more than $300!

The Polar Plunge is our biggest charity event each year, and I'd like to thank all the students who helped to make this happen, whether it was by contributing their time and energy at the donation booths or by volunteering to be dunked into the pond. And this year, it was a true "Polar" Plunge, with over 15 centimetres of ice on the Pond before the Plunge!

This year, Frances came up with an idea to add a little excitement to the dunkings instead of just throwing one engineer after another into the icy waters. So, we made quite a show of things, first having a mock trial of 'geers, with those guilty being punished by plunging. Next were the Polarympics, where those engineers being thrown in didn't just go in passively, but executed flips and turns while in mid-air. The winner of this event was definitely Kevin Maier, who performed a double twist with spin and went in face first. Finally, the Plunge ended with our version of Jeopardy, where "contestants" who couldn't answer the question (or question the answer) were tossed.

All in all, everyone had a great time in the freezing weather, and we were lucky enough to have the sun smiling on us, so that no one froze to death after getting out. Definitely, a big Thanks! goes to University Dining Services for providing coffee for all the participants.

Putting together the Polar Plunge is no small task, and I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped to make this Polar Plunge the success it was:

the other members of the organizing committee: Frances Chan, Cecil Lau, Stephen Lam, Kevin Walton
for putting in countless hours at the donation booths, including the whole day Wednesday: Simon Ng
for the colouring contest design: Kelly Fennig
poster design: Kevin Cheng, Ben Ko
ice breaking: Kelly Fennig, Cecil Lau, Rob Trost, Brendon Wilson
fencing off the ice and holding it off: Paul Helter, Dave Lee, Kevin Maier, John Harvey
setting up plunge area: Kev Walton, Brendon Wilson, Drew MacDonald
our MCs for the Polar Plunge show: Nakul Verma, Kelly Fennig, Brendon Wilson
the throwers/executioners: Gord Morrison, Kevin Henderson, Kelly Fennig, Mat Gierc, Bill Devries
the video camera crew: Anthony Pun
bagpipe player extraordinaire: Gord Morrison

And last, but certainly not least, I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to our sponsors who donated prizes for our colouring contest and random draw: University Dining Services, Boston Pizza, and Red Robin's Restaurants.

Thanks once again to everyone who participated, and I hope to see you all out there again next year, helping to break this year's record donation to help the children of BC!

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Polar Plunge '96

Garson Ho EUSS VP Events

Garson Ho
EUSS VP Events