Hundreds take Polar Plunge for Special Olympics at Cedar Beach

Head insulated by a neon yellow hat and matching fuzzy earmuffs, Debby Michienzi, 76, plunged into Long Island Sound with bare legs. 

“The water isn’t bad!” she said. “Or maybe I’m frozen.”

Michienzi of Mount Sinai was one of more than 550 participants who ran into — and quickly out of — Long Island Sound for the 13th annual Special Olympics of New York's Town of Brookhaven Polar Plunge at Cedar Beach in Mount Sinai on Saturday. The event raised $130,000 to help cover the cost of sports training and competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, according to Special Olympics New York.

The participants spanned generations, with frigid waters and commitment to a cause serving as an equalizer.

“You have the likes of schoolteachers, to students, to law enforcement, to local businesses,” said Diane Colonna, vice president of downstate operations for Special Olympics New York. “It runs the gamut of the community just coming out and supporting our athletes. 

Colonna estimated there were at least a dozen Special Olympics athletes taking the plunge themselves. That group included Daniel Fletcher, a competitive weightlifter who has Down syndrome, and his friend and teammate Joey Collins.

“I’m feeling good, I’m going strong every day, and I’m confident,” said Collins, 22. “And I’m willing to do whatever it takes to show everybody how strong, how tough, I can be.” 

Fletcher, 34, of East Moriches, said he was feeling “frozen and freezing,” but excited. 

Moments before the plunge, participants and spectators milled about, mingling with costumed characters and patronizing a taco truck. Some participants had registered and contributed as individuals, while others formed teams to raise funds. 

Madison Adler, 16, of Miller Place, said she was content to spend a moment of her time feeling cold to benefit Special Olympics athletes.   

“It makes me happy to know that I get to be a part of sending people to participate in such an amazing organization,” she said. 

Adler and her brother, Johnny, 12, are on Team Visiontron, sponsored by the company of the same name. They wore penguin hats in coordination with the company’s mascot, and Madison committed to going all the way into the water this year. 

She took the plunge literally, jumping so wholeheartedly into the water that the penguin hat was left floating beside her.

Fellow Miller Place resident Robert Fitton, 18, founded Team ExtraOrdinary about nine years ago in honor of his brother, Tommy, who has Down syndrome. Today, Robert co-captains the team with his sister Mary, 15, who stood in for him at Cedar Beach this year. Robert, who now attends college in Indiana, planned to take the plunge virtually. 

“The team’s called Team ExtraOrdinary for Tommy’s extra chromosomes,” said their father, Rob Fitton. 

Team members are teenage or younger, and have raised approximately $14,000 this year, Rob Fitton said. 

“Everyone says, ‘Hey, dad, why don’t you go in?’ I’m not allowed to go in the water,” he said. “Because my older guy said to me, ‘Dad, this isn’t about you, this is a gift I’m doing for my brother.’ So I honor that.”
The plunge also drew local officials, including Town of Brookhaven Councilwoman Jane Bonner — a longtime supporter of the event, who refused to use a recent bout of the flu as an excuse not to participate — and Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. 

“It was awesome, it felt great, and it’s for a good cause, so we had a lot of fun,” Tierney said, still soaked.

For his participation, he credited his assistant, Julaine Gelderman, who plunged alongside him. 

By Arielle Dollinger

arielle.dollinger@newsday.com@aridollinger

Arielle Dollinger joined Newsday as a staff reporter in 2022. Previously, she covered local and national news as a freelancer for The New York Times, Newsday and other outlets.