When St. Scholastica wanted to adopt a new mascot, it ended up looking to the past.

For several years Athletic Director Dana Moore had been exploring the idea of a new mascot to unite the College community-athletes and non-athletes alike. Eventually, an image from over 20 years ago began to attract attention. It was a cartoon Saint Bernard that appeared on athletic banners and on the wall of the Reif Center in the early 1980s.

Moore and her colleagues hit upon the idea of bringing back the dog with a new look and a new name.

President Larry Goodwin and his vice presidents agreed, and thus was born Storm. At this past winter's hockey games he was on skates, teasing referees and opposing players. At men's and women's basketball he led cheers and give-aways.

The name has a double connotation: storms on Lake Superior, and the famous story of Saint Scholastica praying for a storm so that she and her brother, St. Benedict, could continue an enjoyable visit. The athletic teams' nickname remains the Saints.

In introducing the live version of Storm at the spring semester convocation, Goodwin playfully tweaked UMD and its well known Bulldog mascot: "I say, there's a new dog in town!" The audience roared its approval as the costumed figure lumbered onstage.

Goodwin thinks the choice of a St. Bernard is a natural.

"If there were to be a Benedictine mascot, this is it," he told the student newspaper The Cable. "A big dog that helps people out. I love it! Everybody likes a Saint Bernard and yet you don't push him around."

Name: Storm

Height: 6'6"

Pedigree: Family line traces to the early 1980s

Tricks: Does not roll over. Never plays dead. Is known to "point"
at opposing athletic teams. (Also leads cheers, chases hocky referees
and throws T-shirts to fans.)

Storm's image is being used graphically on memorabilia, publications, clothing and the College's Web site. The student union dining area has been named Storm's Den. The "live" version is used at ceremonial functions on campus and off; for example, Storm has appeared at the YMCA in Duluth and at St. Scholastica's booth at the "Duluth Days" legislative lobbying event in St. Paul. It sometimes hands out root beer barrels, which call to mind the barrel or cask around its neck.

But Storm's primary use will be at athletics events.

"The feeling was that we lacked history and tradition that other colleges have in their mascot," Moore said. "And we're trying to create an atmosphere on campus for the kids to connect to something. Storm seems to provide that at every venue you see him at, especially athletic venues."

The original St. Bernard's look in the first half of the '80s was more cartoony and grinning. It was phased out by the late'80s.

In general, today's mascots are more aggressive. The reborn Saint Bernard is no exception.

Moore and the coaches worked with Brian Martin, manager of graphic design and advertising, to strike the right balance between making the dog approachable, especially to children, and aggressive.

Being Storm
It's no walk in the park

The costume is a state-of-the-art production from a national manufacturer. But according to several students who have performed as Storm, there are challenges. Vision is somewhat limited. Hearing is impaired. Each paw has only four fingers, making it tough to shake hands properly with fans. The biggest problem: it's hot as a furnace inside the costume, even though the headpiece is ventilated by an internal battery-powered fan.

"The kids really sweat in it," said Athletic Director Dana Moore. "It comes back wet. Our (former) carpenter, Lowell Wilberg, really helped us out with that. He built the greatest contraption for hanging it to dry. You kind of weave the suit into these arms and legs that are attached to pipe, and it's attached to a fan that blows air through it. We wanted Lowell to put it in the (faculty-staff) art show, but he didn't do it."

"My initial reaction to the idea of a St. Bernard was, well, I usually think of more aggressive animals when it comes to mascots," Martin told The Cable. "A Saint Bernard is usually not thought of as a ferocious dog. On the other hand, as a private Catholic college, we don't want to have a wolf with blood dripping from its fangs. A Saint Bernard was a dog that saved lives; it was a helpful dog."

In designing the face and later the costume, he kept all its audiences in mind.

"I didn't want the Saint Bernard to scare little kids," he said. "Some of the features of the face are friendly, like a Disney character. Other features, like the big broad shoulders and narrowed eyebrows, create a more aggressive element."

Moore appreciated Martin's reasoning.

"Initially we were looking for something more aggressive than what we ended up with, but in talking to Brian we learned that the St. Bernard was 'sainted' for a reason. It was an assister, a helper. We're really happy with Storm. We'd like him to be active, with a ball on his finger, with his hockey stick on his hand, and we're working with Brian on that."

The mascot Martin is being developed for more versatility, Martin said, including tailoring it for use in particular sports.

Storm is just what the doctor ordered for revving up Saints sports fans, Moore said.

"The students -I don't know if it's a 'today' thing -sometimes they won't be aggressive on their own," she said. "It's like they need someone to help them along. When Storm is pointing at an opponent, when he's got T-shirts he's throwing out, that really works. The kids will really get loud."

Storm is proving popular with most students, if not universally embraced.

"We had a little resistance from some of the upperclassmen who hadn't been exposed to it before," Moore said. "Everybody else who's on campus for their first or second year, they love it. In another couple of years this will be all these kids have known. That's a good thing, because I know that it does help to build campus spirit."

How about a screen saver of the mighty canine for your computer? Or a coloring contest for kids, with the chance to win Storm T-shirts? Go to the College's Web site at: news.css.edu/storm

The site also features:

• images of Storm at Duluth's landmarks,
• a sendable electronic postcard,
• an animated graphic of Storm in action,
• Storm computer wallpaper.

Watch for future expansion of Storm's site, including merchandise, activities and other fun updates.