Rappelling from a building for Special Olympics

STAMFORD, Conn. (WTNH) -- Forget about a walk or penguin plunge; Wednesday 50 brave residents rappelled down a Stamford building to support the Special Olympics.

"We thought doing this would be a little bit different for people," said Beau Doherty, Special Olympic CT. "It's a challenge, it's not an easy thing to do, but in our first year down here we've got 50 who are willing to go over the edge of this building and have done a great job for us."

"It was awesome," said Charlie Benzyk, Special Olympics supporter. "I wish it were 20 stories taller, it was fun."

To go over the edge, each participant raised at least $1,000 for the CT chapter of the Special Olympics.

"I think that people with disabilities are really one of the last marginalized parts of our population," said Benzyk, "and things like this that bring visibility to it and help them improve their quality of life are fantastic."

The event, which ran from 9 to 5, raised more than $95,000 for the Special Olympics.