CITGO Team Makes a Splash at Polar Plunge for Special Olympics

LEMONT, Ill., March 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- CITGO Lemont Refinery employees made a big splash at the 2023 Polar Plunge at the Braidwood Recreation Club. The CITGO team, along with a corporate donation, raised a total of $14,353 for Special Olympics Illinois. They also brought home three awards from the event including Most Money Raised by an Individual, Golden Years Plunger, and Best Costume. The team of 14 made the plunge in CITGO safety gear, hard hats and all, and polar bear costumes. The Braidwood Polar Plunge event raised over $63,000 for Special Olympics of Illinois from 339 participants who took the plunge.

"CITGO is proud to support the Special Olympics Illinois Polar Plunge," said Jim Cristman, CITGO Lemont Vice President and General Manager. Cristman added that CITGO employees participate in many Special Olympics events, on and off the field, throughout the year.

Special Olympics has raised nearly $27 million by more than 87,000 Plungers since the event's inception 24 years ago. Special Olympics Illinois (SOILL) provides year-round opportunities in competitive sports, health education, leadership, and personal development to people with intellectual disabilities. They have programs in 11 regions in Illinois and reach over 21,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities each year. 

About CITGO
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a recognized leader in the refining industry with a well-known brand. CITGO operates three refineries located in Lake Charles, La.; Lemont, Ill.; and Corpus Christi, Texas, and wholly and/or jointly owns 38 active terminals, six pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,300 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 769,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO is ranked as the fifth largest, and one of the most complex independent refiners in the United States. CITGO transports and markets transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products and supplies a network of approximately 4,200 locally owned and operated branded retail outlets, all located east of the Rocky Mountains. CITGO Petroleum Corporation is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc.

SOURCE CITGO Corporation