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I have served the City of Isanti as Mayor since 2007. We have accomplished great things together and I look forward to building on our success. United, we move forward to a better future. You may contact me at 763-442-8749 or e-mail me at george@georgewimmer.com.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Arctic Plunge Update

Aerial of the Plunge


The Arctic Plunge committee did another great job this year. They raised over $21,000 to donate. This is especially impressive in these difficult times. thank you to all your hard work.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

they have all these people out there and yet three people get hurt bad from drinking and in isanti when there is an event we can't walk around without bumping into the police everywhere, don't get me wrong its a great event raising money for the sheriff's dept but am i reading into this too much about very light s.dept. personel out there, i feel bad for those who got hurt and wish them well, i heard they had twice as many people as last year and gave less money to the s.d. this year then last ?.

George said...

The crowd looked to be about the same to me but I could not say for sure. The major difference from last year is that our community and the country as a whole has lost a tremendous amount of jobs, homes and wealth.

As for the incident that happened again no idea if it was tied to the event or not. If you look at the Isanti County News website there are 3 terrible stories about current and past accidents where the drivers were all drunk.

We have enough road safety issues in the best of situations with so much traffic on roads that were not designed for it. When drinking gets involved people inevitable die. Each of these situations is tragic but in each the drunk driver survived and there is someone else dead or seriously injured.

I pray for all involved in this tragic cycle.

George said...

I can only speak for the City of Isanti that we try to have a strong police presence whenever there is an event that involves drinking.

Anonymous said...

Great event! Thanks for jumping mayor.

To the complainer, don't throw the baby out with the bath water. If 3 people were hurt that night, it's not the event's issue. It's the people who were hurt. It's horrible, but like all things, it's called: personal responsibility. Plunge ended around 4 pm or so. No one was hurt there.

$21,000 in this economy! I'd say it was a huge success. And, let's not forget the beneficiary. It's us, our community. How else do we raise that kind of money? This is a fun family event. Let's keep it going.

Kudos to the jumpers and all of us who support getting out and doing something...not complaining about what didn't work.

George said...

***I am posting this for the organizers***


In response to “Anonymous” who apparently didn’t attend the ARCTIC PLUNGE….



Perhaps you haven’t read the paper or have been under a rock and are not aware that ISANTI COUNTY has the highest foreclosure rate in the state…… Or maybe you haven’t heard how many people have lost their jobs….



With the current economy we were challenged this year and did not anticipate to even come close to our $23,958.72 we made last year! We are grateful for all of our sponsors and jumpers that made this possible. One should also remember we do not change any admission to this event, crowd size does not play a part in our income. Our monies are raised by our jumpers and our raffle sales. I apologize for your disappointment in the $21,000, ($15,162.98 of which was from the JUMPERS), but perhaps you should be grateful for this event raising money for Isanti County Safety Rescue and the Isanti County Food Shelves who are desperately in need!



You may not have noticed the security at this event as they were not walking around with billboards on their back stating “SECURITY”. There was several professional privately hired security personnel at this event as well as Safety Rescue Personnel. As for taking responsibility for poor decisions that are made after a person has been drinking, I will put that back on the individual. It was announced several times that we had a limo available all day and night for a minimal cost of $8.00! Taxi services where also available. As adults we need to take responsibility for our decisions and not place blame where it does not belong…. Anonymous- Do you have any other suggestions to take total control over people’s decisions?



As for the accidents, our thoughts and prayers go to those that were injured. The Arctic Plunge was not the cause of any injuries. We do our best to ensure the safety of all people attending the event.



In closing I would like to add that the ARCTIC PLUNGE COMMITTEE consists or all VOLUNTEERS, we do not collect a dime for putting together this event. The thankless individuals as your self make it an even harder task than it already is. I would also like to say THANK YOU to my peers on the ARCTIC PLUNGE COMMITTEE. Their dedication and passion for the event is amazing. – ROCK ON PEEPS- J



Anonymous- I would also invite you to come forward with any questions, concerns or even suggestions since it seems you are so knowledgeable on putting together such an event.



Carrie Englund

Arctic Plunge Committee

612.282.6246

George said...

The Plunge is a great event put on by tremendous people who give of themselves. They give time, talent and treasue to make this happen only to help others. We are all safer for the work the Plunge Committee does.

Idiot behavior happens everyday by idiotic people. This has nothing to do with the Plunge.