Nonprofits receive grants, prepare for Polar Plunge

MAT-SU — The Mat-Su Sertoma Club is seeking participants and pledges for its ninth annual Mat-Su Polar Plunge, as are grant winners MY House and Mat-Su Senior Services.

MY House Founder and Director Michelle Overstreet said this year was the third time the organization had applied to be a Sertoma grant recipient for the Plunge, so they were excited to be announced as recipients.

Still, the event is not just about the grant winners.

“We’re thrilled to be the recipient but we would participate anyway because its important for our community to have organizations like Sertoma that support causes that are the most needy,” Overstreet said. “We support (the Plunge) whether we’re the beneficiary or not.”

Mat-Su Sertoma Club President Sondra Kaplan said they took over the Plunge from Marty and Cheryl Metiva six years ago and they’re still “freezin’ for a reason” this season.

“Community helping community is really what this is about,” Kaplan said.

The Mat-Su Sertoma Club is a branch of the national Sertoma organization, one of the oldest service organizations in the country, according to the local website. Its primary goals are to assist the millions of people with hearing health issues in the country and to educate the public on related issues.

Mat-Su Senior Services Deputy Director Rachel Greenberg said she and her co-workers knew of other organizations that had received grants from Sertoma in the past, and this year realized the potential of their collaboration.

“Hopefully this will help really publicize that, whether or not you’re a business or a community member, our seniors are valued and they need to be treated as such,” Greenberg said.

The “core purpose” of Senior Services, she said, is to maintain or provide a high “quality of life for seniors,” so working with a group like Sertoma that focuses on a fairly common need for the elderly — improving “the quality of life today for those at risk or impacted by hearing loss” — seems like a perfect fit.

However, the impact of the seniors themselves on the rest of the community is just as significant. Greenberg noted that seniors make up a large part of the volunteer population — they have more time on their hands, for one — and they support local businesses by spending locally, since they don’t typically travel far from their homes. In fact, seniors contribute $2.4 billion to Alaska’s economy in retirement income, health and social security benefits and more, Greenberg said.

Knowing that the funding Senior Services receives supports such a group, she said, makes her job worthwhile.

“It gives you a reason to get up and go to work every morning because you know that what you do makes a difference,” she said.

Both grant winners will receive $5,000 for unrestricted use by and for the individual nonprofit organizations. Greenberg said Senior Services plans to use the funds simply “to support our programs,” which include meal delivery, transportation, care coordination, day services, disease prevention, exercise activities and more for seniors.

Overstreet said MY House has more specific plans for use of their funding in mind, as all of the money will go toward their in-house Steam Driven Boutique and job training for the clients who work there.

While the clients have already received retail training and gained related skills by working in and running the boutique/thrift shop, Overstreet said they could use some more direction for clothing design and “construction.”

“So much of the training that they receive, it’s structured and really pragmatic, it’s not creative,” she said.

To illustrate the clients’ enthusiasm, Overstreet said she, the boutique manager, three boutique workers, her case manager, and maybe more MY House staff will be active participants in the plunge.

“I think it’ll be a great adventure,” Overstreet said.

While Greenberg is not jumping herself, she will be part of the “cheering squad” for the senior center’s four or five employees taking the plunge.

Individual jumpers who wish to participate must raise a minimum of $100, with checks made out to Mat-Su Sertoma and sponsor information filled out on the donations form, which can be found at bit.ly/152urwD.

This year’s event is sponsored by 30 different local organizations and businesses, including radio stations, coffee stands, banks, schools, clubs, musicians, athletes, medical clinics and more. Prizes will be awarded to jumpers with the most money raised, jumpers with the best costume and raffle winners. The Elks Lodge also offers a 50/50 raffle where 50 percent of money raised goes to Mat-Su Sertoma and the other 50 to the holder of the winning ticket.

For registration and more information about the plunge, visit matsuhearing.org/polar-plunge.

Contact Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.