More than 500 people gathered Saturday morning at Riverbend Park wearing anything from costumes to swimsuits to parkas. The temperature was 28 degrees and intermittent snow flurries added to the frigid atmosphere.

But the arctic chill set the scene perfectly for Bend’s annual Polar Plunge.

Some of those participants took the easy way out by running in the Polar Plunge 5K, but the rest were plunging for a purpose: the event helps fund Special Olympics Oregon.

As people milled around waiting for the plunge to start, they perused the sponsorship booths and huddled for warmth around standing heaters. And this year furry friends were welcome to tag along, taking advantage of Special Olympics Oregon’s first puppy plunge.

“Bend is special in that almost everybody has a dog and we thought that could be a fun way to bring more people to the event … We’re the only site in Oregon that has an official puppy plunge,” said plunge manager Jayme Van Erden, referring to the five other cities participating across the state of Oregon.

This was the 18th year Bend has participated in Special Olympics Oregon’s most successful fundraiser. With a goal of $70,000 for Bend, the funds will go toward supporting the mission of Special Olympics Oregon, which is to offer adaptive Olympic sports to children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

Supporting the plunge was Lisa McCormick and 12 others from Bend Family Friends, a 24-hour care facility in Bend for adults with cognitive disabilities. In contrast to the snow flurrying around them, each member of their team came outfitted in leis and grass skirts layered over their warm weather gear, hoping it would help them out as they prepared to run into the 37 degree water of the Deschutes River.

“We have a number of participants who take part in the Special Olympics so we know how important it is. Why not in the blustery snow jump in the river,” McCormick said, as she clutched her coffee cup for warmth as everyone got ready outside their cars.

Down closer to the river, Jayme Van Erden helped prepare the order of events. It’s her second year coordinating the Polar Plunge in Bend and she believes there is something special about the way the Bend community came together.

“I think we actually had 100 people register in the last four days knowing full well that it was going to be snowing all week and I think that speaks to Bend and the kind of craziness and outdoorsy fun that we have out here,” Van Erden said. “And jumping in a freezing river isn’t as crazy of an idea now as it was five years ago.”

The numbers reflect Van Erden’s statement. In 2024 they had 200 more people register than last year and are already $10,000 ahead of the donations made in 2023. With the donation portal open for the remainder of March, it’s not hard to imagine that Oregon Special Olympics will surpass that goal.