First-Time Plunger Goes in the Drink, Then Gets Some Ink
Turi Vinton is a 53-year-old truck driver from Hadley, Massachusetts. He spends some of his summer at Hampton Beach and was visiting a few years ago and got curious about what it would be like to be at the beach and in the water in winter. His curiosity about it led him to the Special Olympics New Hampshire Penguin Plunge.
In 2023, Turi Vinton raised “a little over a thousand dollars” for SONH and plunged for the first time in his life. When asked how his first-ever plunge felt he laughs and says, “I loved every moment of it.”
SONH loves having new plungers join us at the beach (or at home for the Do-It-Yourself Plunge for that matter). But we did find it a little amazing that Turi sent us a photo of his right leg… With the SONH Penguin Plunge logo tattooed on it. Did we mention that this was Turi’s first time plunging? It is not a henna tattoo that’s removable. In fact, the tattoo artist needed three and a half hours to recreate our long-time insignia for the Penguin Plunge.
While each year’s plunge has its’ own theme and theme-specific artwork, Turi chose to use our “generic” Penguin Plunge logo. He added a banner that says “Made A Splash” above the logo.
In 2023, Turi’s plunge was a solo effort. He enjoyed meeting all the plungers and volunteers both in the Casino Ballroom and on the beach but is particularly proud of the fact that he will be plunging with other family members this year. His 21-year-old son Dylan be plunging along with Dylan’s cousin and uncle. Turi’s wife Charlene will be cheering them all on.
You may be asking yourself if Turi has any other tattoos. He’s done some fundraising for Breast Cancer Awareness and that tattoo is on his left leg.
Beyond his curiosity about plunging into the ocean in the winter was there any other reason he signed on to fundraise for SONH? He says, “I can’t save the world, but if you can help one person each day, I think you’ve done something good with your life.”
You can find Turi’s Plunge Page here and his son Dylan’s page here.