The Dutchmen Dip usually takes place in the winter term every year, but with the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a lot of uncertainty as to whether this fundraiser could and would come to fruition. An email sent out by the Communications Office on March 7 announced that, what would have been the 8th annual Dutchmen Dip, had been postponed “out of an abundance of caution.” Once students began to adjust to a term online, Student Activities decided it would be a good idea to reach out to the organizations across campus and set up virtual meetings. 

Among this list of organizations was Colleges Against Cancer, better known for doing the Dutchmen Dip. During the meeting, the Student Activities Office initiated the idea of capitalizing on this virtual time and raising money by doing this ‘dip’ over social media. Thus, the Dutchman Splash was born. 

Stav Shadmi ’20, Alexa Small ’20 and Addy Nowicki ’21 worked together to organize the event this year. Joining this club and being able to organize the Dutchmen Dip/Splash was a priority for all three of these students when they came to Union. 

Shadmi mentioned that, “Before coming to Union I was the president of the relay for life event at my high school. As a freshman at Union, I was able to witness the impact the Dutchmen Dip event had across our Union community.”

Because Shadmi was able to continue this passion in college, “I felt the same passion I had once experienced in high school and knew I wanted to be a part of the Colleges Against Cancer club,” he added. 

Likewise, Small expressed her gratitude towards this club. 

“This event can be a lot of hard work to plan, but it is worth every second of it. I am forever grateful to be a part of Colleges Against Cancer and am continuously inspired with how the Union community helps one another in a time of need.”

Similarly, Nowicki, who was introduced to this club from her own tour guide, Sophie Rosen ’19, shared the same emotion towards the club and the fundraiser itself. “This year, even despite the challenges we faced regarding the Dip’s sudden cancellation due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we were able to raise over $5000 and figure out a new and virtual way to bring our campus together.”

The Dip was also inspired by the wide array of sports videos capturing athletes passing the ball to their teammates across the country and the globe.

The head men’s and women’s tennis coach, Brian Bowman inspired some members of his team to participate in this fundraiser. “I think everyone enjoyed seeing their friends, classmates, professors, co-workers, etc. on social media getting splashed with a cold bucket of water, especially given how much we are missing out on the daily interactions we have with these individuals when we are all together on campus.” 

Bowman mentioned that this fundraiser meant something to all of the participants, including himself, as he has had family, friends and teachers battle cancer.

The club is proud to announce that they raised over $5,000 this year for the Shinebarger Memorial Scholarship. 

“Last year, the scholarship was created and Tom Coleman, an extremely generous alumni, made a deal with us: if we raised $20,000 on our own, he pledged to donate another $20,000 to the scholarship. We raised over $20,000 on our own, and he so generously donated $30,000, for a total of over $50,000 for the scholarship in Kristen’s memory,” the club noted.