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BROOKVILLE HIGH SCHOOL

The Brookville High School “Bees”

Mascot Name: Brookville Bee (played by Mallory Harding)

Bee’s History:

According to Phyllis Coleman, author of the book, “A Place Called Brookville,” the idea of the Bee, which would later become the school’s mascot, started as the result of a contest.

“A school-wide contest was held in 1945 to name the school newspaper. Larry Smith, a Brookville fifth-grade elementary student, won the contest prize of $5.00 for naming it, The Bee Line. Larry still has the original first edition copy,” Coleman wrote in her book.

With the new name in place, the school then needed a visual mascot for The Buzzer, Brookville’s yearbook.

“‘The Bee’ made its first appearance in The Buzzer of 1940,” Coleman wrote. “According to classmates, Umberto Zechini is credited with drawing the familiar Bee, the beloved mascot of Brookville High School.”

Coleman says that while she is unsure of exactly when the Bee transitioned into a costumed mascot, she knows that it was present on nearly every cover of The Buzzer from 1940 on. A photo of the costumed “cheerleader Bee” in 1962 is one of her first photos of the Bee in uniform. Coleman says that the school’s class ring always had an old English bee on it back in the 40s and 50s, “though that changed over the years,” she said.

Today, the Bee mascot boasts the original school colors of maroon and gold, and can be seen regularly at Brookville’s football games and athletic functions.

E.C. GLASS HIGH SCHOOL MASCOT

The E.C. Glass “Hilltoppers”

Mascot Name: “Ramsey” or “Rambo”, depending on which costume he is wearing

Ramsey/Rambo’s History:

Chip Berry, Athletic Director at E.C. Glass explains that because Lynchburg is the Hill City, the school’s mascot is the Hilltopper, represented as a big horn sheep or ram. The school song talks about Glass being on one of the highest points in Lynchburg above the James, so Ramsey the mascot is a natural extension of that.

When asked of the mascot’s history at E.C. Glass, Kay Vaughan, the school’s historian, says:

“We have been the ‘Hilltoppers’ for as long as I can remember–which goes back to the 50s. My hubby goes even further back, and except for the name ‘Hilltoppers,’ he doesn’t know of an actual mascot back then. I graduated from Glass in 1964, and I never knew us to ever actually have a physical mascot before then. The first I knew of a mascot was in 1977 when Larkin Burnett wore a Ram costume.”

Vaughan recalls reading a blurb in the 1978 yearbook that said that some of the football games could get rowdy with opponents actually attacking the ram. Once in Charlottesville, she recalls from the story that the cheerleaders needed a police mascot, and Larkin’s ram head was knocked off. Vaughan also remembers a need for a new mascot costume.

“I remember that after a while, the Ram costume got funky/moth-eaten or something, and Jane White spearheaded a drive to get a new costume. The next time I knew of the mascot was when James Spearly became Rambo/Ramsey,” she explained.

E.C. Glass’ mascot is known for his two faces. “Ramsey” is the full suit, which is more little kid friendly, according to Berry. The mascot becomes “Rambo” is when he puts on his “game face” and wears a uniform, camouflage or referee shirt plus the mascot head.

HERITAGE HIGH SCHOOL

The Heritage High School “Pioneers”

Mascot Name: Pioneer Pete

Pete’s History:

Heritage High School’s mascot was originally a Davy Crockett-type, complete with coonskin jacket and cap with a rifle. But in recent years and in the interest of promoting an image and a message without the firearm, the school purchased a new mascot outfit which is a human character.

JEFFERSON FOREST HIGH SCHOOL

The Jefferson Forest High School “Cavaliers”

Mascot Name: The Cavalier (played by Alex Cox)

History: As far back as she can remember, Wendy Singleton, JF’s Yearbook Advisor says that their mascot has always been called the Cavalier.

“When the school was started, class officers were invited to help create the mascot, school colors, etc.,” she said. “Since most of them had attended Liberty High, they wanted the colors and the mascot to be different.”

The school’s proximity to Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest helped with the name, she explained. The Cavalier came about from Jefferson’s connection to the University of Virginia. The school colors of scarlet, black and gray (later changed to scarlet, black and white) were chosen because there were no local schools with those colors. Heritage was not open yet, and Singleton said that “most area schools had blue or maroon in their colors,” so JF went in a different direction.

“At one point in the school’s history, a girl wore the cavalier costume and even rode a horse at some games,” Singleton said.

LIBERTY UNIVERSITY

The Liberty University “Flames”

Mascot Name: “Sparky” the Eagle

Mascot History:

The Liberty University athletic teams are nicknamed the Flames and have been since 1974. For seven years, no other team claimed this unique distinction. However, in the spring of 1982, the University of Illinois at Chicago had a student body election and voted in the Flames through a write-in campaign. Their choice is based upon the fact that the Chicago fire started only three blocks from the campus.

The student body also made the choice for Liberty in 1974 when they choose the Flames over several other choices. The decision was based upon the school’s motto, “Knowledge Aflame.” Throughout the many changes LU has seen in the past 40 years, Flames remained as the nickname for Liberty’s athletics teams.

In 1980, the Eagle was designated as the new Flames mascot, due to its patriotic symbolism and connection with the school name, Liberty. It was designed with the Flames’ nickname in mind. Thus, the flaming torch clutched in the Eagle’s left talon was included with the original mascot renderings.

On August 31, 2006, the newest Liberty mascot was born and introduced to all in attendance at Williams Stadium. Sparky, arriving in a stretched black limousine, stepped foot on the playing surface at Williams Stadium just prior to the Flames’ 27-0 victory over St. Paul’s to help usher in a new era in Liberty Athletics. Ever since, Sparky has been a visible attribute to Liberty Athletics at various home and road events, as well as community involvement.

Sparky received a makeover at the start of the 2010-11 Athletics season. On October 2, 2010, the new Sparky was unveiled in front of 19,314 fans at the start of Liberty’s grand-reopening of Williams Stadium. The Flames went on to defeat Savannah State that night, 52-14.

LYNCHBURG COLLEGE MASCOT

The Lynchburg College “Hornets”

Mascot Name: Elsie the Hornet

Elsie’s History:

Elsie is the mascot of Lynchburg College’s varsity teams. Athletic activities were intramural in nature from 1903 until spring 1907, when the first intercollegiate team (baseball) was organized (The College was founded as Virginia Christian College in 1903). The first teams were known as the “Fighting Parsons.” The Hornet was named the mascot in 1919. Al Marshall, class of 1921, suggested the Hornet nickname during his first year at LC and implemented it through articles in the student newspaper. He chose Hornets because Hopwood Hall was infested with them and because Wasps and Yellow Jackets had already been taken. The mascot was named “Elsie” in 1997.

RANDOLPH COLLEGE

The Randolph College “WildCats”

Mascot Name: Wanda WildCat

Wanda’s History:

Wanda was “born” in the 1980s when Randolph College was named Randolph-Macon Woman’s College. The capital “W” and “C” stood for the woman’s college in the name. In 1998, the first “real” mascot was introduced to campus at a basketball game. The mystery Wanda sauntered onto the court to the cheers of fans. The College president at the time, Kathleen Bowman, surprised the crowd when she revealed herself by taking off the mascot head.

Wanda is now an integral part of Randolph College and often appears at various traditions and events. She is played by students and sometimes staff members. She even has her own Facebook page (Wanda WildCat) and is Facebook friends with a rooster (El Hefe), who resides in the College’s organic garden.

Wanda is a lovable, energetic wildcat who is known for crazy dances and joking with her fans. While she is a regular at Randolph sporting events, Wanda is equally present at different College events. She performs with the College President at Pumpkin Parade and attends many other activities. She also loves children and participates in the Randolph College Nursery School 1/10 miler each fall.

SWEET BRIAR COLLEGE MASCOT

The Sweet Briar “Vixens”

Mascot Name: Indiana, goes by Indie

Indie’s History:

Sweet Briar College’s student body has been the Vixens since 1978, when students voted on the mascot. In 2010, the students voted to name the Vixen “Indiana,” in honor of Indiana Fletcher Williams, who donated Sweet Briar Plantation to be founded as a women’s college in honor of her deceased daughter, Daisy Williams.