Post-Plunge group photo, courtesy of CCAN

A few weeks ago we got together with Katie Cook to talk about her passion for clean energy and sustainability as she prepared for the 8th Annual Polar Bear Plunge hosted by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. After participating in this inspiring event we invited Katie to share her story and enthusiasm with the Clean Currents community. Here's what she said:

Wow -- the Plunge was amazing and unforgettable!  I felt alternately inspired, amused, cold, and a little freaked out!  I'm so glad I did it. 

Hearing from the speakers before the Plunge got me really psyched to jump in.  I thought the 11 year-old girl who had done the Plunge four times was inspirational -- I realized there's no excuse NOT to do the Plunge.  One speaker Rev. Lennox Yearwood likened the climate justice movement to Martin Luther King's civil rights movement, but this time it's a fight for our own existence.  What an awesome message.

In one word, the experience of the Plunge was hilarious.  About two hundred people -- from very young to 70 plus years old - stood shivering on a snowy beach.  After a count of five, everyone ran screaming into the Potomac.  I stood next to the Congresswoman Donna Edwards who dove right into the river as if she were just going for a leisurely swim.  I imagine that watching the whole thing was really funny -- people cheering before the Plunge, yelping as they splashed in the river, and then promptly running back into the tents for a change into warm clothes.

But most of all, it was rewarding to know that we were all supporting the Chesapeake Climate Action Network's vitally important work to promote renewable energy and reduce carbon pollution in the DC/MD/VA area.

I'm looking forward to next year's Plunge and I'm fired up for the Climate Rally on February 17th on the National Mall!

Check out pictures from the event here!