Rotorua people take plunge to help out Harold the Giraffe

Locals braved the chill and took a plunge to raise money for Life Education Trust Rotorua this weekend.

The annual Dunk for Harold fundraiser was held at the new venue of Rotorua Aquatic Centre on Sunday.

Life Education Trust Rotorua chairwoman Jules McLaughlin said they were thrilled with how the event went and were pleased with the new venue.

There were just under 70 dunkers who took the plunge this year.

She said they raised more than $6000 on site and there were more donations to come.

"The costumes were great, and the family support was great."

She said the trust was not government funded so the money would help to keep the trust and Harold the Giraffe's work in local schools running.

Rotorua's Julie Voss, who was rocking a big rubber ducky costume, said she loved dressing up, being crazy and making costumes.

"Harold is such a fun way to teach kids about being healthy and the trust is a fabulous cause. This is a brilliant event."

She said she was excited to do the dunk - "The adrenalin is pumping".

"It's great to see all the kids excited too. It's such a fantastic event and anyone can do it."

Annalise Drabble, 11, and Jayden Drabble, 8, had been looking forward to raising money and jumping in because it was fun.

The dunk was warmer compared to previous years at Blue Lake (Tikitapu) and it was still just as fun jumping in, they said.

They said Harold's bus was a cool thing to do so they wanted to raise money so Harold could continue to visit the schools.