Milwaukee Polar Plunge; New Year's Day tradition at Bradford Beach

MILWAUKEE - Hundreds of people celebrated the new year by taking the Polar Plunge at Bradford Beach on Milwaukee's lakefront. FOX6 Photojournalist Kaitlyn Brost captured another year of the tradition.

As usual, first responders were in the water with the people who plunged. The air temperature at the lakefront was expected to be in the upper 20s. The surface water temperature for Lake Michigan was around 40 degrees.

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Former lifeguard returns

Among those gathered to take part in the annual tradition was former Bradford Beach Head Lifeguard, Keith Kalberer. It was 40 years ago that Kalberer, 62, led a crew of ten lifeguards in keeping Bradford Beach patrons safe. He decided to join the revelry in 2024 and now, again in 2025.

A news release said Kalberer had come up through the ranks of the Milwaukee County Lifeguard Corps, starting out as a 16-year-old rookie lifeguard in 1978 at Doctors Park Beach, now known as George Tietjen Beach, the founder of the lifeguard corps.

Working the summers on the beaches of Milwaukee County through high school and college, Kalberer's last season on the beach was as a 22-year-old, heading into his senior year at the University of Wisconsin. However, that was not the end of his days with Milwaukee County.

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After graduating in 1985, Kalberer was promoted to beach supervisor, then established the position of assistant aquatic director, before heading up Milwaukee County’s Aquatic Division in 1989.

It was later that Kalberer transferred into the marketing division of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture as the special events manager. After that, he was the development manager and then became the marketing director for the parks system in 1996, a position that he held until 2004.

Kalberer retired from Milwaukee County in 2012.