A total of 77 plungers Saturday raised $13,000 for Special Olympics Indiana at the Polar Plunge on Center Lake under sunny skies and record- high temperatures. The top individual fundraiser was Beth Upton from Team DePuy, which also was the top fundraising team. The team with the most plungers was the Bone City Rollers. DePuy-Synthes is a state sponsor of Special Olympics Polar Plunge events. Winner of the “best costume” contest was DePuy team member Dustin Albert, who said the event was his first cold water plunge. He said he was attracted to the event because it was for a great cause. Local sponsors for the Warsaw Plunge are Bowen Center, Paragon Medical and Metzger Trucking. Other teams included Instrumental Machine & Development, Bowen Center, the Warsaw Community High School Difference Makers, Wawasee High School, Warsaw Police Department Dare Team, Texmo, Special Olympics Kosciusko County, Special Olympics Fulton County, KGP Logistics, BACA Hart and Elwood Staffing. Tom Wogoman, Rick Ditto, Megan Fisher, Leah Everest and Megan Dinse from the Bone City Rollers and Brian Lardino provided promotional assistance. Willie 103.5 and WRSW 107.3 broadcast live every year. Pizza Hut Fort Wayne Inc. provided lunch from its Detroit Street location. The event would not be possible without the help of The Warsaw PD Dive Team, Lutheran EMS and Warsaw Parks and Recreation, according to Buzz Lail, Special Olympics Indiana Northwest regional manager.
