ICE COLD CUSTOM
Hundreds brave frigid water during 23rd Polar Bear Plunge
Cold. Freezing. Perhaps insanity or bravery.
These are a few words some might choose to describe the Polar Bear Plunge. But for ECU students, faculty and staff, it comes down to one word: tradition. This year, more than 700 people participated.
Stephen Gray, director of Disability Support Services, or Papa Bear, depending on whether he is standing in the pool, has attended every Polar Bear Plunge at ECU.
“This is my 23rd consecutive year. When it first started we had about 30 or 40 faculty and a few students. A few years ago we reached over eleven hundred students. It is awesome,” he said.
Victoria Crouch, a freshman studying nursing, has had her eye on the event since before she was a student at ECU.
“I saw online before I decided to come to ECU that they do a polar plunge and I had never done it before, so I thought it would be a cool thing to do every year until I graduate,” she said.
Crouch found confidence jumping alongside her friend Savannah Suarez, a psychology major who was jumping for the fourth time.
“I actually do this back home to raise support for the Special Olympics,” Suarez said. “We jump in the ocean though, and snow is on the beach, so this tonight should be kind of easy.”
Josh Rolan, a senior studying business management, is jumping for his fourth and final time, but doesn’t stay in any longer than he has to.
“I’m just jumping in, getting my hair wet and going under water and then getting out,” he said.
While Rolan and Suarez are likely doing it for their last time, people like Crouch and Gray will be here next year, ready to take the plunge again.
Why? Tradition.
