Also representing the western Kenai Peninsula, Lopeman’s Leapers made a return appearance. This was the 10th year for team members Kathy Lopeman of Kenai and Tom Hindman of North Kenai; Lori Orth of Soldotna joined for the second year and John Kaskainous of Kasilof jumped for his third year. The team raised $4,822.
“We just had a great time,” Lopeman said. “This was a good year to jump. It was warm.”
“Warm” is a relative term for Polar Bear jumpers. In spite of Saturday’s wintry temps, Lopeman recalled a past event when the temperature plummeted with a teeth-chattering wind chill caused by a 30-knot wind.
“We really froze when we got out of the water,” Lopeman said.
Sponsored by the Seward Chamber of Commerce, the Polar Bear Plunge began in 1986. According to organizer Marilyn Sutherland, pledges from jumpers have meant more than $1.2 million for the American Cancer Society over the years.
McKibben Jackinsky can be reached at mckibben.jackinsky@homernews.com.
With a cheering crowd lining the dock, Hill and other costumed participants braved Saturday’s heavy snowfall and broke through chunks of ice. Jumpers included Mrs. Alaska 2006, Michelle Martin of Anchorage, a six-year cancer survivor.
Tom Redmond of Soldotna also was among the Saturday’s jumpers. Dressed in a bright green Leprechaun suit, Redmond was jumping for his 10th year. Single-handedly raising more than $1,000 this year, he said he is motivated to participate in the event because it is “a good cause.”
We encourage you to add your comments. To prevent spam, comments with links are manually approved during the normal business day. Please be respectful of others with your comments, bear in mind anyone in the community may be reading your comments.
