Chicagoans love the cold and while it may be freezing at 40 degrees, it’s sandal and short weather for these guys. They don’t shy away from the cold, especially when they can take a plunge in the icy waters of Lake Michigan in order to raise money for the Special Olympics. That’s what happened this weekend, where several celebrities took the Polar Plunge in order to raise money for this great organization.
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There are several events that take place throughout Illinois, but the most popular is the one that takes place downtown Chicago. Several celebrities from the Chicago Fire TV show came along for the plunge including Taylor Kinney and his fiancé, Lady Gaga, Al Roker, Vince Vaughn and others.
“You gotta feel pain to feel empathy,” said Lady Gaga.
What is Special Olympics?
Special Olympics is an organization that transforms lives through the joy of sport. They are the world’s largest sports organization for people with intellectual disabilities. They have over 4.5 million athletes in 170 countries worldwide.
People with intellectual disabilities, such as Down syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Cerebral palsy, Epilepsy and many more make up this organization. Through sports the organization raises awareness about intellectual disabilities, but most importantly it gives these individuals the opportunity to do something amazing.
They discover their strengths, abilities, skills and success. Plus they find joy, confidence and fulfillment because sports push them to be motivated and work towards a skill they didn’t know they had.
The organization puts these games together for these athletes, which is open to all ages from 8 year olds to adulthood. They are able to participate in a variety of 30 Olympic-style sports competitions and the money raised during the Polar Plunge makes this happen.
This weekend’s Polar plunge raised over $1.5 million for Special Olympics Chicago.