Take the plunge towards a better future. On March 3, students at the University of Western Ontario and Fanshawe College, as well as other residents of London, will be diving into freezing water to raise money for children's cancer research.

The Sears Great Canadian Chill will be hosting its event in London as part of the "Great Canadian Event Series." The London chapter is in support of the National Pediatric Oncology Initiative and the Children's Health Foundation in London.

Chloe Creavalle is the Participant Experience Manager at InField Marketing. She is organizing and promoting the event and said, "The first of the series was a run that we did in three different cities across Canada in (the summer of) 2011. So this is our winter version of that." So far there have been Winter Chills in Toronto and Ottawa, and Vancouver will see one in February.

Victoria Falana was a participant at the Toronto Chill. She said she couldn't believe the outcome. "The thing that stood out the most was the spokesperson they had, the young cancer survivor talking about her journey and her experiences. It makes you feel like you're really contributing to something that's bigger than yourself; saving lives, helping make changes in people's families and the lives of children who should be playing and living and growing."

Traditionally, the event is held on a beach where participants can run into the lake in the middle of winter, also known as the polar bear dip. Since London isn't located close to water that is safe to swim in, for the first time ever, The Sears Great Canadian Chill will be building a pool in Victoria Park so participants can still get their chill on.

Creavalle said it's a very emotional experience. "As the person that deals a lot with the participant experience, I get to speak firsthand with some of these families that are struggling and have children that are going through chemotherapy and surgery after surgery. We've just really met some inspiring teams and some families that are going through tougher things than you can even imagine. And finding time to be part of our event and raise money for this initiative is really inspiring."

Students can play a huge part in raising money and awareness about the event. "Our goal is to have at least 450 people. We're hoping that a good chunk of those will come from Western and Fanshawe, and within the student community, we're hoping for more than $30,000 raised," said Creavalle. "Ultimately I think it's definitely doable. We have a great group of people on this team that are helping, and we're really inspired by the attitude of the students and the people in the London community, so we're very excited."

There will be live entertainment, food, heated tents and hot tubs. Students can put teams together or attend individually. Registration is done online at thechill.ca, where you can create a personal fundraising page that explains your interest and involvement in the cause and to help spread awareness about the event, but most importantly, people can donate directly to your personal page. Walk-up registration can be done on the day of the event. Registration is $12.50 for students and $25 for members of the community.

"Being there really sparked my excitement to be involved and to do something more than what I have already done," said Falana. She said she hopes the London Chill will have an even bigger impact on the London community.