First Annual Wachusett Mountain Polar Dip to Benefit Camp Sunshine Set for Sat., Jan. 23 at Wachusett Mountain Ski Resort

Freezin’ for a Reason event to raise money for Camp Sunshine, a one-of-a-kind retreat in Maine for children with life-threatening diseases and their families

PRINCETON, Massachusetts (January 7, 2010) – The first annual Wachusett Mountain Polar Dip to benefit Camp Sunshine is set for 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2010 at the base lodge of the Wachusett Mountain Ski Resort in Princeton, Mass.

Participants will plunge into a special outdoor “polar pool” filled with ice-cold water to raise money to help send more families from Massachusetts to Camp Sunshine, a one-of-a-kind retreat in Maine for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Every participant is encouraged to raise a minimum of $100 in pledges for Camp Sunshine and those who do will receive an “I DID IT!” t-shirt. All proceeds will benefit Camp Sunshine. To pledge online and for more information on the event, visit www.freezinforareason.com. Wachusett Mountain is located off Route 140 in north central Massachusetts at 499 Mountain Road in Princeton.

“The reality of this event is that the discomfort our plungers feel for just a moment will never compare to what our families go through during the course of their child’s illness,” said Michael Smith, Camp Sunshine’s Director of Special Events. “It’s for the families and children that we plunge... we call it Freezin for a Reason. “

Nestled alongside the shores of beautiful Sebago Lake in Casco, Maine, Camp Sunshine (www.campsunshine.org) offers children with life-threatening illnesses and their families a place to relax together for a week and to take a break from the extraordinary demands placed on them on a daily basis.

The year-round program is free of charge to the families and staffed almost entirely by volunteers. It is the only program in the nation whose mission is to address the impact of a life-threatening illness on every member of the immediate family.

Since Camp Sunshine opened in 1984, it has provided a haven for more than 32,000 family members from 47 states and 17 countries. Approximately 25 percent of these families come from Massachusetts. In fact, in 2009 alone, 164 Massachusetts families participated in Camp Sunshine’s program. Sadly, even with multiple sessions being added annually at Camp Sunshine, there are still many more children from Massachusetts being newly diagnosed each year, Smith said.

The goal is to raise $15,000 at the Wachusett Mountain Polar Dip, enough to fund 10 additional Massachusetts families at Camp Sunshine.

Camp Sunshine’s program continues to be recommended by the following Massachusetts treatment centers: Children’s Hospital Boston, Boston University Medical Center, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Floating Hospital for Children at New England Medical Center, MassGeneral Hospital for Children, Baystate Medical Center Children’s Hospital, and UMass Memorial Medical Center.

To support Camp Sunshine, please call (207) 655-3800 or visit www.campsunshine.org.

The Wachusett Mountain Ski Area (www.wachusett.com), located on Mount Wachusett, features skiing and snowboarding on 22 trails for all abilities, serviced by eight lifts. The popular resort, located an hour west of Boston, boasts 100 percent snow-making capacity.

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Here is more news and information about Camp Sunshine.