One group of post-secondary students is getting set to take a very public group polar bear dip but such tomfoolery can’t be chalked up merely to university hijinx. The event, after all, is a philanthropic effort en masse.
The eighth annual Chillin' 4 Charity event takes place during the last week of the month when some University of Alberta students from the Alberta School of Business help to boost the United Way's fall fundraising campaign … by cannonball jumping into a pool that best resembles the Arctic Ocean.
“I will be jumping into a pool of frozen water, yes,” confirmed fourth year Bachelor of Commerce student Julia Rudolf with much amusement. Maybe she laughs in the face of fear because this won’t be the first time that she has taken the plunge for the same cause. She was part of the event at this time last year, when snow had already been on the ground for a few weeks.
When asked what the experience is like, 21-year-old St. Albert resident hemmed and hawed for a few seconds before uttering another giggle.
“The cold water is definitely unexpected but jumping in as a group – because you do jump in as an entire organization – it really brings you together. It’s a really good time actually, regardless of the cold. I jumped in twice just for fun!”
The student group is called JDC West, based on Jeux du Commerce, a prestigious annual event in eastern Canada that brings together over 1,500 top business students. In the west, the complementary event focuses on three full days of intense academic, athletic and social competitions – including a parliamentary debate – in January. Schools vie to win points toward being named school of the year.
JDC is the largest student-run business competition in Western Canada, involving 12 universities with more than 650 delegates.
The group donates 100 per cent of the proceeds from Chillin' to the United Way, and all 12 chapters hope to break the $100,000 mark with this year's event.
Students involved with JDC West must take the plunge with an artistic flair while dressed in creative costumes. The goal for the U of A team this year is to raise a minimum of $11,000. The event takes place on Wednesday, Oct. 29 in the Quad on the U of A’s main campus.
To learn more or to help the U of A students achieve that goal, pledges can be made via the group's website at www.chillin4charity.com or visit www.albertajdcwest.com for more information.
