Highland Park students do the Polar Plunge
On Sunday, Feb. 25, members of Highland Park High School's Rotary Interact Club boarded buses and headed to Fox Lake to participate in the annual Polar Plunge to support Special Olympics Illinois.
Dressed in their favorite SpongeBob SquarePants gear to represent their theme, "HPHS Presents: Plungebob SquarePants," the 75 club members, who raised approximately $15,000, dove into the icy waters.
Although they didn't win an award for best costume, Highland Park High School's Rotary Club walked away with the Cool School Challenge trophy (for the second consecutive year) for raising the most money at the event.
HPHS teacher Melissa Zientara, one of the sponsors of the school's Rotary Interact Club, was presented with an award for being a top fundraiser, raising more than $4,000 in memory of her former student and Rotary Interact Club member Rohan Malempati.
Rohan, who passed away at the young age of 17 in 2014, loved volunteering for Special Olympics, and he was an integral part of making the HPHS Rotary Interact Club what it is today.
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