Canandaigua Community Braves Frigid Lake Waters to Support Special Olympics Athletes

Emily Brushafer earned the right to go first. Aptly wearing an "I'm Cold" T-shirt, she was the first plunger to enter Canandaigua Lake on Sunday as part of the annual Canandaigua Polar Plunge, an honor she claimed by raising more money than any other participant. Keith Mulawka of the State Police was right behind her.

The Polar Plunge returned to Kershaw Park on March 15, 2026, drawing participants from across New York into the near-freezing waters of Canandaigua Lake to raise funds and awareness for Special Olympics New York athletes in the Genesee Region. Registration ran from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., with the plunge itself kicking off at noon.

Canandaigua Mayor Thomas Lyon was among those who took the leap, photographed shortly after emerging from the frigid water. Theron Chinn of Canandaigua Middle School brought a team with an annual tradition behind it. "We do it as a fundraiser for our students for Special Olympics," Chinn said. "We get nominated each year, so we gotta take the plunge."

The event drew plungers from well beyond Ontario County. Chrystal Ratulowski made the trip from Batavia; Steven Kramer came from Buffalo. Mike Leone of Webster joined Greg Constantino, a perennial plunger who clearly needs no convincing. Josephine and Johanna Arnitz, a daughter-and-mother team from Victor, took the plunge together, while Maureen Miskell of Manchester proved she had no hesitation whatsoever about cold water.

That community commitment has compounded into something substantial. Over the years, the Canandaigua community has raised more than $250,000 for Special Olympics New York, a total that reflects years of cold mornings at Kershaw Park, 155 Lakeshore Drive, and a consistent willingness to sprint into a frigid lake in March. Special Olympics New York uses those funds to provide inclusive, Olympic-style coached sports to people with intellectual disabilities at no cost to athletes, their families, or caregivers.

The Polar Plunge ranks as one of the most popular fundraising events for Special Olympics New York statewide, and Sunday's edition at Canandaigua Lake showed exactly why: elected officials, state troopers, school teams, mother-daughter pairs, and first-time plungers all sharing roughly the same expression the moment the cold water hits.