EMERGE Wrestling joined the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge before its Stock The Shelves event in Columbus, Indiana, using the moment to show support for TNA alum Rebel during her battle with ALS.
Members of the EMERGE roster and staff participated in the challenge outside the Bartholomew County Fairgrounds as wrestlers, staff and fans gathered around to watch.
What began as an Ice Bucket Challenge quickly turned into a show of support for Rebel.
As the participants prepared to take the plunge, the people surrounding them began chanting:
“Rebel! Rebel! Rebel!”
Rebel, whose real name is Tanea Brooks, publicly revealed her ALS diagnosis in 2026. She has since been involved in efforts to raise awareness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, while members of the professional wrestling community have continued passing the Ice Bucket Challenge from one participant to another.
For EMERGE Wrestling, the tribute also carried a direct connection to the promotion’s own women’s division.
Current EMERGE Women’s Champion Marti Belle and Rebel share history from their time in TNA Wrestling as members of The Dollhouse.
Rebel joined the faction in 2015 and later teamed alongside Belle and Jade during the group’s run. The three competed together in TNA, including against The Beautiful People and Gail Kim, and remained linked through several storylines during the Knockouts division’s Dollhouse era.
Belle has since become one of the centerpiece performers in EMERGE Wrestling, where she has held the EMERGE Women’s Championship for more than two years.
The challenge took place before EMERGE 99: Stock The Shelves, an event already centered heavily around community involvement.
Fans were encouraged to bring non-perishable food donations to benefit the Love Chapel Food Pantry in Columbus. WrestlingHeadlines.com observed numerous spectators arriving with grocery bags, canned goods and other donations before the event.
EMERGE also drew a strong crowd for the evening. The promotion confirmed that the first and second rows had sold out before the show, while third- and fourth-row seating was selling quickly. By bell time, WrestlingHeadlines.com observed the seating filled with additional spectators standing behind the seated audience.
The Ice Bucket Challenge added another charitable and community-focused moment to the evening before the first match even began.
The participants were soaked with buckets of ice water while fans and wrestlers continued chanting Rebel’s name.
After completing the challenge, EMERGE continued the tradition by nominating others to participate next.
EMERGE participants nominated WCWO,
The moment highlighted the reach of the wrestling community beyond individual promotions.
Rebel’s history with Marti Belle connects TNA’s past directly to one of EMERGE Wrestling’s current champions, while the fans in Columbus made their support clear simply by chanting her name together.
For a promotion already using Stock The Shelves to support its local community, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge provided another example of professional wrestling being used for something larger than what happens inside the ring.
WATCH:
Watch EMERGE Wrestling take the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in support of Rebel.
