SYRACUSE - It wasn’t as bone-chilling freezing as it had been just a few days prior, but those who braved the cold elements Saturday to plunge into Lake Wawasee at Oakwood Resort helped raise funds for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kosciusko County.

    Jason Holmes (L) participated in his first Polar Plunge Saturday, along with friends and co-workers from Kroopf Industries (#Kroopf). Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

Saturday’s Polar Plunge was the sixth year for Oakwood Resort’s event, according to Tammy Smith, BBBS of Kosciusko County development director.
“This is the first year that we are receiving the funds from it. They pick a different charity every year,” she said. “We are getting all the proceeds today from the event. ... We are really excited to be the recipient this year.”
All the donated funds will be used to recruit volunteers and for the approval process for volunteers - background checks, interviews, etc. - to get a volunteer ready to be a mentor for BBBS.
While Smith wasn’t taking the plunge herself, she had several volunteer ambassador committee members going in the lake, as well as their friends and family.

Brandin McCulloch and Brock O’Haver show the crowd how a backflip is done in icy water during Oakwood Resort’s Polar Plunge Saturday. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union

“We have a special offer. That can be even afterwards, too. For a $25 donation, people can not jump but say they did,” she stated.
The funds raised will help BBBS as it continues to grow in Kosciusko County. Smith said, “Our program has more than tripled in the last couple of years and it’s really great that the community is stepping up. We need local funds to support the program here more than ever and it’s great that the community is stepping up to do that.”
Alyssa Trout, general manager for Oakwood Resort, 702 E. Lake View Road, Syracuse, said 2023 was the first year they held the Polar Plunge after taking a couple years off due to Covid-19.
“This is my second year doing it. Last year, we partnered with Turkey Creek Fire Department, and this year we wanted to do something different, switch it up,” Trout said. “I met Tammy through the Kosciusko Chamber (of Commerce) and we kind of connected and started talking about how she wants to do more stuff in Syracuse, so that’s how that was born. So we chose Big Brothers Big Sisters off her.”

    Amanda Sautter-Hacker, dressed in a cheeseburger costume, finds it colder to get out of the Lake Wawasee water Saturday than staying in. She was one of the dozens of participants of the Oakwood Resort Polar Plunge that benefitted Big Brothers Big Sisters. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

Oakwood Resort gave out prizes to crowd favorites. She said they have two heats - one for individuals and one for groups, however they sign up.
“Then we’ll judge them based off those two heats, and then, whoever the winner at the end is, we have prizes for. But all of the money they give to plunge - it’s $20 per person - all of those proceeds are going to go to Big Brothers Big Sisters,” Trout stated.
Oakwood Resort matched dollar-for-dollar whatever was raised during the event, she said. People also could just donate money if they didn’t want to walk, run or jump into the icy lake.
Winning the best group costume was The Barbee Bay Watch team that included Cindy and Joe Bickel, Leslie Elizalde, Shane Vannatter, Katie Beeson and Tim Mulvihill. Winner of the individual costume was Rick Kiessling.
For safety purposes, a full dive team was on site during the Polar Plunge.

    Joe Melendez falls backward into the icy water Saturday as his wife, Yessie Carrillo, and the dive team member looks on. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

Trout said they cut the hole for the plunge over 48 hours because there was a lot more ice on the lake than they were expecting. In 2023, there had been no ice at all. She estimated they had to cut through 7 to 8 inches for this year’s event.
“This is just a fun event for us because it’s a good way for us to work with the local community and give back. It’s January in Syracuse, so it’s fun to do something after the holidays and kind of give people something to (do),” Trout said.
About 20 minutes before the plunge started, 14 individuals and 10 groups of four had signed up for the Polar Plunge.
Trout said Oakwood Resort likes to do stuff and partner with others to get involved in the community, as well as bring more awareness to the premier hotel in the winter.
“We do a lot of our business in the summer, obviously, but this is a good way to get locals and people from the whole area,” Trout said. “We’re here, we’re open, come visit Oakwood, it’s fun - even in the winter!”
They have 79 hotel rooms, along with a few vacation homes they rent out seasonally, along with event spaces.
Going forward, Trout said they will probably have the Polar Plunge on the last Saturday of every January for as long as they can.
Joe Melendez and his wife, Yessie Carrillo, of Nappanee, took the plunge together.
“I wanted to do something with my new wife and we’re going to do this together. She parachuted before me, and we’re going to do this polar plunge together, knowing that my next thing is to do parachuting with her because she’s done that before me,” he said.
Carrillo said she’s definitely a daredevil and likes to get the adrenaline rush going.
Jason Holmes, Goshen, was doing a polar plunge for his first time Saturday.
“I don’t really know,” he said when asked why he decided to do it now. “I just wanted to do it, just try it out.”
He said he planned to walk in as fast as he could, duck under the water and walk out as fast as he could. He was part of a team of seven that included friends and co-workers from Kroopf Industries.
Simone Zareski, one of the Oakwood Resort restaurant managers, took the plunge with the group from Oakwood. She’s originally from Jamaica.

    Even a number of young children took part in the Oakwood Resort Polar Plunge Saturday, which benefitted Big Brothers Big Sisters. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union
  

“I’m the one who planned it and I was like, ‘It’s an adventure!’ And I’m an adventurous person, and I just wanted to experience that since I’m in a different country and I enjoy being here and I just wanted to do something different, for the first time,” she said. “Coming from a tropical country to a cold one, it’s exciting for me.”
She said she got into the water without fear and it made her excited just to do it.
“It’s just like a new experience. Life is a journey, so this is one that I took,” she stated.
Amanda Sautter-Hacker wore her cheeseburger costume and a hat to plunge into the lake.
“All that cold just hits you all at once. But it was fast, thankfully, and then once I got up and lost my hat, it was cold. It was very cold,” she stated.
It was her first time taking the plunge and she said she “absolutely” would do it again. “I loved it.”

    Kris Marquart, an Oakwood Resort employee who cut the ice for Saturday’s Polar Plunge, jumps into Lake Wawasee Saturday after getting a running start. Photo by David Slone, Times-Union