It was a spectacular day in the South Okanagan for fundraising New Year's Day swims.
Over at Sun-Oka Beach near Summerland, the 37th annual Summerland Polar Bear Dip, run by the good folks at the Kinsmen Club of Summerland, attracted a crowd big enough to completely overrun the Sun-Oka parking lot -- a rarity at any time of year.
But the happy surprises continued an hour later directly across Okanagan Lake at Centre Beach in Naramata, where 200-plus people and 70-plus swimmers made the first-ever Naramata Polar Bear Fire Plunge a smash success that we hear will definitely return a year from now.
Not bad for an event that hadn’t even been conceived a month ago.
"I came up with the idea," explained co-organizer and Naramata resident Will van Middendorp as the crowd gathered in the noon hour, "and then my wife suggested to tie in the fire department as a fundraiser."
The die was cast. Soon Naramata volunteer firefighter Stephanie Denroche came aboard in the other organizational role and the concept took off.
"We made up flyers and posted as many as we could," said Denroche. "We didn’t really know what numbers we'd get, but we figured about 60 swimmers."
Ultimately there'd be a bunch more than that and a ton of spectators too, and, in the end, $1038.10 in donations.
"The money has been directed to the Naramata Fire-Fighters Society for the benefit of the volunteer fire department and our community," said Denroche afterward. "We’re so thankful to our community for their support and generosity and we look forward to doing this event again next year."
And of all the folks brave enough to actually take to the water, perhaps none was more enthusiastic to be there than Quebec native and Naramata resident and teacher Patricia Leclerc.
Leclerc had an…interesting December. She had brain surgery on the 13th.
And now here she was, having a blast with her posse from Quebec and frolicking in the cold water like a little kid.
"They discovered I had a tumor in my brain in March," she told us, wrapped in a towel after a lengthy foray in the frigid lake. "And finally I learned at the end of November that I'm going to have surgery in Vancouver."
"I was supposed to get out of hospital the Saturday after, but I didn’t get out 'til last Thursday."
Leclerc said she feels "amazing" after the successful operation.
"My vision isn’t quite okay yet," she said, "and it'll be a lot of work until February. I've been through a lot for the past ten days, but I'm a pretty active person and have been moving around all the time."
She admitted she was scared, but also prepared.
"I decided to trust my journey," she said with a smile. "I tried to be positive and think everything will be alright."
Leclerc is scheduled to miss work for approximately six weeks, but wants to return before that. And she hopes her situation inspires others. We don’t see how it can't.
Also at Centre Beach on New Year's Day were locals like Kerri Lockwood, who lives in the village but spends a lot of her time working in the far, far north. Nunavut to be exact.
She said her hubby, an Ironman competitor who freely admits he can’t handle the cold, challenged her to partake.
"He dared me to do it this year," she said with a laugh, "and I decided about a half hour ago."
For Naramata's Debbie Scarborough, who's spent time working as a firefighter, also in Canada's north, the event was a chance to prove something to herself.
"I've always heard about these and I come out to support them," she said, "but I've never done them. So this time I thought, 'What am I waiting for?'
"I used to be a firefighter. They save lives. They're always there. So it was time."
"It was an awesome day," said van Middendorp Sunday evening, "and definitely a bigger turnout than I expected. And we did great on the fundraising too. We for sure will do this again next year."
