Students, some of whom were wearing innertubes, snorkel masks and life preservers, took a dive into Lake LaVerne to raise money for Special Olympics.

About 500 people lined the shores of the lake as 400 participants jumped into the 40-degree water in heats as part of the Third Annual Polar Bear Plunge Saturday evening. The event raised $27,000 for Special Olympics Iowa.

“It exceeded our goal by $7,000,” said Jessica Rohlfing, Greek Week community promotions co-coordinator. “We’re absolutely ecstatic about it.”

Members of the greek community made up the largest percentage of participants, but local celebrities also took the plunge. Football coach Dan McCarney, Vice President for Student Affairs Thomas Hill, and Channel 8 KCCI-News anchor Jeanette Trompeter were among those who waded in for charity.

McCarney, a veteran plunger, gave some advice to participants.

“That first step you’ll sink down about 18 inches in mud,” he said. “After that, there are a few goal posts from the last few years when we kicked Iowa’s butt.”

Participants raised $50 each to participate in the dive. The jumpers were divided into 20 groups of two to 20 people who splashed in one group at a time.

Patricia Soderholm, member of Alpha Xi Delta, 315 Lynn Ave., took a swim in the lake and said she hopes to continue participating in future years.

“It was really exhilarating,” said Soderholm, freshman in pre-journalism and mass communication. “[The temperature] wasn’t bad until I went under.”

Rob Nagengast, member of Phi Delta Theta, 2035 Sunset Dr., said the water was colder than he expected, but he said he took the plunge anyway since the money went to a good cause.

“I was Greek Week chair for our house, and I thought this would be a good way to be involved,” said Nagengast, sophomore in mechanical engineering.

Rohlfing, sophomore in psychology, said the Polar Bear Plunge has grown since its inception.

“The first year, there were only about 35 people there. We’ve come a long way,” she said.

Rohlfing, who has been planning the plunge since November, attributed the success of the event to having people involved in the Special Olympics speak at fraternities and sororities.

“We pushed it so hard so [participants] could put faces and individuals with the money they were raising, and that made all the difference,” she said.

Rohlfing said the event is also successful because it gives people a unique way to raise money.

“It’s a memorable experience and something that no one will forget,” she said.