BIRCH BAY - Don't even try to keep up with the Joneses when it comes to New Year's Day polar bear plunges.
Sunday, Jan. 1 was the 15th polar bear gathering of the descendants of the late Chuck and Sophie Jones of Nooksack. Those descendants now number 76, including in-laws - or, as they are called by Joneses of the blood, "outlaws."
The event begins at the Jacob's Landing condo of Tom Jones, the oldest of Chuck and Sophie's eight children. He wears the number 3 on his T-shirt. Everyone in the family, "outlaws" included, is assigned a number based on seniority in the family, and on New Year's, they wear that number painted on a T-shirt or in some cases, skin.
At 11:30 a.m. Sunday, the Jones condo was packed. Young and old snacked on crackers, cheese and cold cuts, while the adults awaited their chance to sip a bit of brandy from the polished shell of the late Ollie the box turtle - an essential Jones pre-plunge ritual.
"This is just one of many weird things that we do," said Alison Jones. "It can be difficult to explain to other people."
Ollie had been a cherished family pet in the home of Mark and Tammy Jones for many years. After Ollie's passing, they put him in a shoe box and kept him in a freezer for a couple of years while they waited for some inspiration on a fitting memorial.
"We've got an old freezer downstairs we don't use," Tammy explained.
Eventually, Ollie's carapace was turned into a small decorative bowl that Tom Jones kept at his home as a repository for the small agates he gathers on the nearby beach. One year, during a party, somebody spilled brandy into the little bowl. Being a thrifty sort, he emptied out the rocks and finished his beverage. A tradition was born.
The family's polar bear plunge had a similarly accidental beginning. Tom Jones said some family members were out on the condo patio enjoying the bay view on a summer evening in 1997 when conversation turned to the annual polar bear plunge that the Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce organizes every New Year's Day, a few hundred yards to the north of Jacob's Landing.
One young member of the clan, then middle-schooler Andrew Larson, said he didn't think a wintry plunge into the bay would be any big deal. So Tom Jones called his bluff, and the youngster and three other relatives were at the condo to take the plunge on New Year's Day 1998.
"Four of us went in, and it just grew from there," said Jennifer Lautenbach, one of the original foursome.
The Jones family has many zany gatherings each year, with any holiday on the calendar providing a pretext.
"We just really value family and getting together and staying close," Lautenbach said.
Not every Jones values cold water immersion, despite the hot tub available at the condo for recuperation afterwards. Mark Jones said he tried the polar bear plunge for the first time just last year and doesn't feel the need to experience it again.
"I'm one and done," he said.
But after the countdown to noon, most family members joined the mad, splashing rush into the placid bay that startled the ducks. Alison Jones emerged grinning, spluttering and shivering.
"It's so fun," she said. "It's the anticipation that's the worst. I can't think of a better way to start the year."
Then she started jumping up and down, shouting "Double dip! Double dip!" Alison and a much smaller contingent of Joneses headed back into the water.
"The brandy doesn't hurt, either, she said as she hit the water a second time."
Reach John Stark at 360-715-2274 or john.stark@bellinghamherald.com. Read his Politics blog at TheBellinghamHerald.com/blogs.
