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The History of the Jumpoff

The first Seward Polar Bear Jump was held in 1986. Individuals dressed in costumes jumped into Resurrection Bay. Sponsors were acquired by the jumpers in order to raise money for the Alaska Division of the American Cancer Society. Buses were provided for a Anchorage-Seward-Anchorage trip on the day of the jump. Advance tickets were required for the trip. There were several activities besides the jump that took place during the day of the jump. These activities included; Dog Weight Pulling contest, arm wrestling and auction.

Polar Bear Festival Association

What started out as a one day event has now expanded into a statewide winter festival. The highlight of the festival is still the "Plunge" into Resurrection Bay occurring on the third Saturday of January. The "Plunge" still benefits the American Cancer Society. Prior to the "Plunge” new and exciting family activities have been added to the Festival schedule.

Many of the activities of the Festival benefit local non-profit groups as well as helping Children with Cancer. The festival activities include children's games, Seward Parks & Recreation - Basketball Tournament, waitress & waiter contest, Lip Sync for the family, Karaoke contest, seafood feed, Bachelor/ Bachelorette Auction - assisting Kenai Peninsula Children with Cancer, quilt show, book sales, rummage sales, oyster slurping, turkey bowling and a parade. Sunday the activities include furry flurry contest for your canine companions, cross country skiing, and the haircut off.

Winter family fun festival continues to grow each year.

The Plunge has had statewide and national television and radio coverage, been included in numerous newspaper and magazine articles, including Country America Magazine, Winter Living, Chase's Calendar of Events, USA Today, Unlimited, Modern Maturity - AARP, Seward Phoenix Log, Anchorage Daily News, Peninsula Clarion, Bell's Travel Guide, Alaska Magazine.

In 1991 a writer for "Outside" magazine came from Florida to take the Plunge and do a story on the Festival. The Festival has also been featured "live" on radio stations KBRT in Orange County California, KFSK in Hawaii, KZLA/KLAC in Burbank and ABC radio affiliate from Dallas, Texas and Sidney, Australia.

Televised segments of the Festival have appeared nationally on Paramount Studio series HARDCOPY, the New York Travel Channel, Los Angles Weekender, KGW TV-Portland and KING TV -Seattle - Evening Magazine show and in Alaska KTUU-Channel 2 and Alaska Superstation Channel 13.

Paul Gray of Exploring Alaska produced a video of the Festival, which has run several times on Alaska's Superstation. A Korean television company included it in one of their programs. An article on the Polar Bear Festival appeared in the February 2001 issue of the Reader’s Digest and in the Canadian issue.

The goals and objectives of the Polar Bear Festival Association are to assist the American Cancer Society and other non-profit organizations with their programs, Kenai Peninsula children with Cancer, and youth programs.

One of the ways that we do this is by coordinating and sponsoring the Polar Bear Jumpoff Festival!

COME ONE! COME ALL!
SPEND THE DAY OR STAY THE NIGHT.
JOIN IN THE CABIN FEVER RELIEVER!
THE 3rd Weekend in January each year.

Seward Polar Bear Festival Association
P.O. Box 386 Seward, Alaska 99664
(907) 224-5230 or
E-mail northernnights@seward.net

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