Mental health polar plunge coming to Collingwood this month

A Wasaga Beach team of polar plungers have been practising jumping into the frigid Georgian Bay in preparations for a main event coming up in Collingwood at the end of this month.

On Nov. 26 and Dec. 3, BrainFreeze 2022 will be taking place across Canada at five different locations. The event is organized by Jack.org and Surf the Greats, and seeks to raise funds for local youth mental-health initiatives. The entire event has a target of raising $250,000 for the cause ($50,000 per location) as plunges will take place in Collingwood on Nov. 26 and in Toronto, Montreal, Halifax and Vancouver on Dec. 3.

Ashley Mulock is one of the members of The Technical Traders Hot Tub team, which is based in Wasaga Beach and is one of many teams that will be participating in the Collingwood plunge.

“We all have friends with kids who are struggling with mental health issues and need support,” said Mulock. “Whatever we can do to assist. It grew out of conversations with friends.”

As of Nov. 11, the team was nearing $7,000 in donations, with a goal of being the top fundraising team for the Collingwood area.

In preparation, Mulock says the team has been practising jumping into Georgian Bay. As the days get colder, she says the team has pledged to jump in as practice every time they receive a donation or get a new team member.

“I’m both dreading it, and can’t wait for it,” said Mulock with a laugh. “I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Mulock says people can choose to donate to existing teams, set up their own teams to participate in the plunge or sign up to volunteer on event day.

“It’s a coming together of community to raise funds and awareness of youth mental-health programs,” she said.

According to their website, Jack.org is Canada's only charity training and empowering young leaders to revolutionize mental health in every province and territory.

In early 2022, Statistics Canada reported that just over 40 per cent of Canadian youth aged 15 to 24 reported having excellent or very good mental health in late March and early April 2020, compared with 62 per cent in 2018—the largest drop of any age group.

For more information on BrainFreeze 2022 or to register a team, click here.