Oakdale Plunge raises $33,000 for youth, water rescue team

Water rescue experts from Hudson Fire Department were joined by their counterparts from the Athens Fire Department to show off the teams’ skills and to ensure safety.

Karen Schrader, who is a profiler for the dive team, stays on shore during water rescues and monitors where the divers have searched. Schrader’s husband is a firefighter. She said the Hudson and Athens water rescue teams work as one.

Mark Vota, of the Athens Fire Deparment’s Swift Water Rescue Team, said the teams collaborate when emergencies arise on the Hudson River.

“The last time we took a temperature it was 41.6 degrees,” Vota said. “I was in there for two hours, I’m a little chilly. It’s awesome. It’s great to see the community come together, you know, support everybody, crazy people jumping in there.”

Vota said the chili provided by Morabito’s helped warm him up.

One of those “crazy people” was Lisa Durfee on Team Lords-a-Leaping.

“I do it every year,” Durfee said. “I find it really invigorating. It’s for a great cause.”

The team derived its name from the Christmas tune, and found it fitting for Leap Day. Durfee also crafted the team’s costumes.

“They’re just terrific,” said Windham resident Sandi Laskowski about the costumes. “We’ve seen it on TV a lot and we just really wanted to come out, we donated, it’s just great really.

Laskowski and her husband moved to Windham recently and decided to bundle up and see what it was all about. They looked forward to supporting all the teams from the shore and experiencing their first Oakdale Plunge.

“These are very brave people and it’s great watching the rescue teams,” Laskowski said.

Jane Trombley, Hudson 1st Ward alderwoman, said she was partial to Dunkin Gonuts as her favorite costume of the day. Their tea bag costumes did end up tying for Best Costume with Team Lords-a-Leaping after deliberation from judges Mayor Kamal Johnson, The Second Show's Carol Lavender and Elena Mosley, of Operation Unite.

“I think it’s one of the best events in Hudson,” Trombley said. “I think it brings the community together. It supports both the youth and the fire department, and just look at all the people who are willing to stand in the snow, there you have it.”

Spectators huddled together, cheering on friends racing toward the water.

Karin-Renee Roberts, an RN at Columbia Memorial Health, plunged to celebrate her birthday. Teammates sang her “Happy Birthday” before they raced down the sand.

Matt Wood, of MetzWood Insurance, said he is proud his team has been the top fundraiser two years in a row. 

“It was a lot of fun,” Wood said. “It’s been a great  community event and it’s been fun to see how it’s grown over the years.”

Billy Shannon, of Team Camphill Hudson, participated to join with the community to raise money for the causes. Camphill works with people of all abilities and supports individuals with special needs, Shannon said.

Mindy Vanek, of Port Ewen, and Gerard Conte, of New Windsor, traveled two hours Saturday morning to join in the plunge.

“I didn’t know I was going to do this today,” Vanek said.

It was Vanek’s first time doing a plunge, and she said Conte surprised her. He told her to put on a bathing suit and be ready at 9 a.m.

“She thought we were going to an indoor water park,” Conte said.

Peter Frank, with Friends of Hudson Youth, said 120 people plunged and there were coincidentally 366 individual donations, which is fitting for a Leap Year.

“Even though it was cold, we definitely had more people,” Frank said. “It totally exceeded our expectations.”

Last year, there were 76 plungers and warmer temperatures.

Frank said in the end, there will be about $15,000 for each organization. A final count will be calculated over the next few days. 

Abby Hoover is a reporter for the Register-Star. Contact her at ahoover@registerstar.com or (518) 828-1616 x 2500.