WWMT Sports Director Andy Pepper Plunges in Kalamazoo, Raises More Than $5,100

WWMT sports director Andy Pepper jumped into the icy water at the Kalamazoo Polar Plunge on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, and raised more than $5,100 for Special Olympics Michigan, WWMT reported. The station’s coverage included video and photos from the event.

Pepper had gone into the plunge aiming to raise $4,500, according to a WWMT image caption, and his reported haul of over $5,100 exceeded that pre-plunge goal. A WWMT Facebook post noted the 2026 participation with the shorthand that Pepper raised over $5k and added a congratulatory line, “Great job, Andy!”

The Kalamazoo Polar Plunge was held at Shakespeare’s Pub in Kalamazoo and, per WWMT image copy, the overall event raised more than $50,000 for Special Olympics Michigan. WWMT’s captions noted community members braved frigid water temperatures Saturday as part of that annual fundraiser.

Pepper’s 2026 result adds to a long record of Polar Plunge fundraising. WWMT and Pepper’s Instagram copy say he has taken the Polar Plunge since 2009; an Instagram post states he has since raised over $43,000 for athletes through those efforts. The $5,100-plus from Feb. 21 is reported as this event’s personal total; the Instagram caption does not specify whether that figure is included in the cumulative $43,000.

Beyond the Polar Plunge, Pepper has run high-profile Salvation Army fundraising drives. WWMT headlines and image captions document recurring 18-hour bell-ringing marathons, including scheduled 10th and 11th annual events, and note fundraising totals reported in past years of over $10,000, over $11,000, and over $14,000 on various occasions. WWMT also reported Pepper began an 18-hour bell-ringing marathon on Nov. 27, 2023.

WWMT’s site provides multiple image captions and a reporter’s blog that track Pepper’s community fundraising milestones, including the pre-plunge goal line “Andy Pepper to take the plunge for Special Olympics, aiming to raise $4,500” and the headline “Kalamazoo Polar Plunge raises over $50k for Special Olympics Michigan.” Those assets include video and photos from the Feb. 21 plunge.

Andy Pepper’s Feb. 21 plunge reinforced a decade-plus pattern of local fundraising through cold-water plunges and marathon bell-ringing events, adding another $5,100-plus to his personal totals and contributing to the Polar Plunge’s reported event total of more than $50,000 for Special Olympics Michigan.