The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
FREEZIN’ FOR A REASON
VERONABEACH, N.Y. » The iconic Camp Sunshine Polar Dips held its seventh dip of the year at Verona Beach State Park Saturday.
Led by local Camp Sunshine families, dippers plunged into the icy waters, raising $20,000 to help sustain the mission of Camp Sunshine, a free-of-charge retreat on Sebago Lake in Casco, Maine for children with lifethreatening illnesses and their families.
In all, nine dips were planned across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic through March, with a goal of raising $250,000 in total. This is the fourth year a dip has been held in Central New York.
“We’re thankful that we can still count on people to unpack their swimsuits each winter and take a quick dip into freezing cold water to support Camp Sunshine,” said Michael Smith, development director at Camp Sunshine. “A couple seconds of cold are nothing in comparison to what Camp Sunshine families face on a daily basis. This is an easy way to help support
your community and we hope we’ll see a lot of new faces in Central New York this year.”
Funds are raised by teams and individual registrants who commit to taking the icy swim. The funds enable children with life-threatening ill- nesses and their families to enjoy a week at the awardwinning Camp Sunshine on Sebago Lake in Maine freeof-charge. At camp, they join other families on similar journeys and experience the benefits of empathy and encouragement, recovery and recreation, and hope and inspiration.
For more information about Camp Sunshine, visit: www.campsunshine.org/
— Michael Smith, development director at Camp Sunshine “A couple seconds of cold are nothing in comparison towhat Camp Sunshine families face ona daily basis. This is an easyway to help support your community and we hope we’ll see a lot of new faces in Central New York this year.”