It's not a pig, it's a wild boar, students at Howe Sound Secondary School (HSSS) said assuredly.
But it's also maybe not the best mascot students can run out onto the field with, Rory Baldwin admitted. The Grade 12 student is a member of the athletic leadership class and helped guide discussions regarding a new HSSS mascot and logo.
The Howe Sound Sounders are a little confused. Some old-time Squamoleans have told the school that the name comes from a herd, or sounder, of wild pigs. Others say it originates from the roar of a black bear. And then there's the theory that it comes from Howe Sound itself.
Although most students like the name, it's the image that needs work, Baldwin said. So far students have come up with everything from a bear to a flaming unicorn. Baldwin's personal favourite is a killer whale.
While some of the suggestions are comical, creating a mascot for the school is serious stuff. Baldwin, who played on the football team, recalled suiting up against Argyle Secondary School's Pipers. At the big game, the team was accompanied by a person playing the bagpipes.
"[A mascot] is not so much for the team, it is for the crowd and we notice the crowd," Baldwin said, adding he thinks a mascot would help bring more spectators to high school sporting events.
The hunt for a new mascot and logo was brought about in response to renovations to the school's gym, HSSS principal Christine Perkins said. Built in the '50s, the school's gym sorely needs a new paint job, weight room equipment and, most importantly, a new floor, she said.
Structural work was completed on the facility in 2004, said Rick Hume, School District 48's director of facilities and services. In May, the gym will be closed for four months worth of renovations on the school's change rooms and the theatre stage, which is being used as a weight room.
"We don't have capital money to address the whole gym," Hume said.
The upgrades will be broken up into phases. Replacing the gym floor is estimated to cost $300,000, with the overall improvements estimated at $500,000.
By the time it comes to painting the walls, Perkins hopes to have a new mascot and logo in place. The school is asking for feedback from the community on what residents would like to see leading sports teams to battle or stamped on the top of letterheads.
"We want to honour the past and include the future," Perkins said.
To add your say on what HSSS's mascot and logo look like email [email protected].
