Sue Coviello plunged into the freezing ocean earlier this Month for her 20th time and perhaps final Penguin Plunge in support of Special Olympics New Hampshire and her daughter Amanda Coviello, one of the athletes.
“This was my retirement plan. I figured 20 years is a good time. Twenty years is a good amount of time to have jumped in the Atlantic in February,” Sue Coviello explained. “I know it sounds silly. But it was important to me.”
Coviello, of Allenstown, said she is glad the Special Olympics came up with a way to perform the annual plunge during the coronavirus pandemic be cause it’s an important fundraiser.
Usually the plunge is held at H ampton Beach, but this year things had to look a little different. Some people like the Coviellos still went to Hampton Beach to dive into the ocean, but Special Olympics New Hampshire urged everyone to keep their distance and stay safe. To avoid crowds, the organization gave people the ability to do the plunge anytime, anywhere from Feb. 3 to Feb. 7.
About 800 people participated in the plunge this year, more than ever before, spokesman Mark Ericson said. Those who participated were invited to send in photos and videos of their frigid bravery. Ericson said the organization got several hundred new “plungers” because of the new flexibility. In the future, Special Olympics New Hampshire hopes to continue to hold the event in person at Hampton Beach and allow people can participate from their own from home.
With a nod to Dr. Seuss, this year’s theme was “Oh The Places We’ll Go” because of the “Do-It-Yourself” style of the event and the hundreds of locations involved. Some plungers even wore Dr. Seuss costumes.
Some jumped in a river, lake, or the ocean; others stood in the snow and dumped a bucket of ice water on themselves. The organization gave pails to “plungers” filled with incentive items, snacks and other items from sponsors.
One plunger got even more creative.
“We had one gentleman who didn’t think the plunge pail was quite sufficient. So he called his neighbor and his neighbor came over with his tractor and they filled the tractor bucket with water and hit him with it,” Ericson said.
Sue Coviello said the annual event is a blast and it’s too bad COVID got in the way.
“I did miss the celebration. And it’s also a chance to catch up with friends that you only see at Special Olympics,” she said. Coviello said her daughter Amanda successfully raised almost $1,400 this year even without leaving the house.
Amanda Coviello, a skier, said she is looking forward to getting back to seeing her friends, getting back to sports and getting some training in. She also hopes to get picked to go to the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games.
Amanda represented New Hampshire at the 2009 World Winter Games in Idaho.
“It was like a really cool experience for me. I mean, I was the only alpine skier from New Hampshire,” Coviello said. She won two gold medals and one silver.
Sue said her third year plunging was two months after going into chemo for breast cancer, one month after surgery and three days before she started radiation.
“I got the doctor’s approval then I asked them for money,” she said. She’s been cancer free now for over 16 years.
Sue Coviello said the first time she got her head totally wet when she plunged was purely accidental.
“I always said somebody would have to give me $500 for me to get my head wet,” she said. “I stopped to help a guy who fell and somebody goes, ‘watch out for that wave, it’s huge.’ So of course you turn around and look right? It broke on me.”
Amanda’s 10 year old niece also made the plunge for the first time this year with her grandmother.
“Honestly after you do it once. It’s, it’s fun,” Sue Coviello said. “People think I’m nuts when I say it. You know, it is fun. It’s high, when you plunge, it’s high energy. You know, it’s the celebrations.”