Editor’s note: Click here to read about the Bi-County Bulldogs Special Olympics Basketball Team headed for State competition.
Morrison High School Principal David Mills stated, “I am doing the Polar Plunge again to support Special Olympics. This will be my ninth plunge. [I encourage people to] donate to support this awesome group. Our son, Payton, has done Special Olympics for over a decade, and I will continue to do the Polar Plunge as long as I can.”
Payton is now 15. “He started with Special Olympics at age two or three,” said Mills. “He attends a special Co-Op school called The Center, in East Moline, IL. Payton [participates in] Baseball, Track and Field, and Swimming,”
Mills had 62 donors when the Editor interviewed him and now has raised $2385. He was in first place among plungers in Region F–from the greater Quad-Cities to Galesburg, IL. “I have raised my goal this year to $5000. Please donate if you can, and share this effort.”
Mail or hand deliver a check to Mills at Morrison High School, 643 Genesee Avenue, Morrison, IL 61270, payable to Special Olympics Illinois, attention David Mills. “Please share my fundraising page with anyone who would be willing to support Special Olympics. Click the link to donate online: https://support.soill.org/dmills.
When asked to describe the Polar Plunge experience, Mills replied, “It’s all knives; the pain is sharp!” Scientifically, a body’s first reaction to a plunge into chilly water is the “cold shock” response. Your heart rate jumps. Stress hormones spike. You gasp suddenly and may hyperventilate.
On Friday, March 1, 2024, at 2:25 p.m., Principal Mills will hold a school assembly to introduce Spring sports; students may participate in games. At 3:00 behind the school, the he will demonstrate a plunge into cold water. Mills will be barefoot, wearing a swim suit and t-shirt.
Two days later, about 1:00 p.m., 50-to-60 Law Enforcement plungers will jump into an above-ground, retaining pool, at Bally’s Quad Cities Casino & Hotel, 777 Bally Boulevard, in Rock Island, IL.