Holmes New Mascot Costume (Phase 1 Conceptual Design)

                                                                                              Current Mascot 

At Holmes we are very proud to be the hedgehogs! Our mascot "Hedgie" the hedgehog is used for numerous school activities, and events: Trunk or treat, family dance, end of quarter celebrations, open house, graduations, assemblies, and more. In this first donation phase we are hoping to partner with The Mascot Company in order to create a conceptual design with artwork for a new mascot costume that is made based on our school logo and licensed as our own community and school character. We are seeking $650.00 plus cost reimbursement. Once we move into fundraising for the Production, (phase 2), $500 of the original $650 amount will automatically go toward the production of the new costume.

Why does Holmes need a new mascot costume?

For safety and greater community connection "Hedgie" could really use an update. Our present mascot costume does not actually come from our school logo, but is based on a European mascot known as Harold the Hedgehog. So while he is a hedgehog there really is not any other unique connection to the Holmes elementary community as the suit is not our own character. While most mascot designs integrate sight through the mouth of the character suit our current mascot uses quarter sized holes through the eyes meaning that vision is extremely limited for staff who wear the suit. Staff in the suit need to be guided by another staff member by the hand to be able to move around safely. Current materials are also bulky and heavy. The suit also has broken battery/electric equipment inside making the suit harder to wear. It has also been recommended by multiple professional mascot companies that Holmes should not use a mascot suit with that equipment due to safety and lack of efficiency. The current suit with cables in place requires dry cleaning for the outfit rather than cheaper cleaning methods. The current shoes for the character are also slippers with fabric bottoms making the outdoor use of the mascot harder on the suit as a whole. Also because we do not have an actual character through licensing finding a replacement suit, or making any fixes to the current suit is difficult. 

(Current School Logo and European character Harold the Hedgehog that our current mascot suit is based off of)