BOLINGBROOK – In her first year taking the plunge, a Bolingbrook resident topped 500 of her colleagues in raising money for Special Olympics through the annual Polar Plunge event.

Lin Taibl raised $8,740 for the 14th annual Polar Plunge as part of a team of more than 500 ComEd employees.

Taibl, a senior work planner with ComEd, then followed that up by taking the ceremonious jump into the frigid waters of Lake Michigan on March 2.

ComEd gave Taibl skybox tickets to an upcoming Chicago baseball game – she chose the White Sox over the Cubs – for her efforts.

Hosted by Special Olympics Chicago at Chicago’s North Avenue Beach, the Polar Plunge fundraiser encourages participants to run into Lake Michigan and benefits approximately 5,000 athletes from Special Olympics Chicago.

The 500-strong “ComEd Coolers” team raised almost $138,000 for this year’s Polar Plunge.

Editor Ryan Terrell spoke with Taibl about her experience.

Terrell: Why is this effort important to you?

Taibl: My brother, Jerry, was one of the original Special Olympians back in the 70s. He was diagnosed with autism at a very young age and now he lives in a group home called Good Shepherd Manor in Momence. Before I took part in the Plunge, I went through many of the photos of him with all his medals, so that drove me. I thought [Special Olympics] was a great organization to raise money for.

Terrell: How did you raise so much money?

Taibl: I just reached out to a lot of my personal contacts. Our CEO of ComEd supported me, so did the CEO of Exelon. ... It just took off. I didn't think it would take off like it did. But it was all through email. I think it helped that I wrote personal emails rather than group emails.

Terrell: What was it like hitting the frigid waters of Lake Michigan?

Taibl: I am going to be really honest, it happened so quickly that I didn't think about until we were back in the tent. We were standing there and our clothes were wet, so it was cold. It's true, the more clothes you go in with, the worse it is.

Terrell: Did you plunge in costume?

Taibl: I went as an inflatable bull rider. One of ComEd's themes has to do with smart and energy-efficient cars, so I put a sign on me that said, "This may look brown, but it's green," and it ran off batteries.

Terrell: What is next year’s goal?

Taibl: I am going for $10,000. I think I can do that ... I have a new strategy I will use next year (she kept it secret).

_______

Get to know Lin Taibl

AGE: 47

RESIDENCE: Bolingbrook since 2006

OCCUPATION: Senior work planner/supervisor at ComEd for six years