Swimmers brave cold water to raise money for charity

December’s not usually a good time for swimming outside in northern Iowa, but more than one-hundred people braved the frigid waters of Clear Lake on Sunday to raise money for charity. Chris McCoy is one of the folks who took part in the sixth annual Polar Bear Club Plunge.The event raised eight-thousand dollars for Make-A-Wish of North Iowa and Toys For Tots as part of Clear Lake’s “Christmas by the Lake” celebration. Jim Dickerson of Fontanelle Iowa made his first-ever dip into the lake. He says it was cold, but good fun.Brad Barber of Clear Lake thought the water was not too bad, he says it was cold, but he says the waiting was the worst part.Randall Rogers of Topeka, Kansas, has been working for Alliant Energy in the north-central Iowa area, and had done a cold-water dip such as this in Norway.In total, 138 dippers went into Clear Lake yesterday. All 138 survived.