Rooney (mascot)

Last updated
Rooney
RooneyMascot.jpg
University Roanoke College
Conference Old Dominion Athletic Conference
Description Anthropomorphic hawk
Origin of name Roanoke Maroons
First seen 2009

Rooney is the costumed hawk mascot of Roanoke Maroons in Salem, Virginia. Officially, Rooney is considered a "Maroon-tailed Hawk" which is "indigenous" to the Salem, Virginia area.

Mascot person, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or for fictional, representative spokespeople for consumer products

A mascot is any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fictional, representative spokespeople for consumer products, such as the rabbit used in advertising and marketing for the General Mills brand of breakfast cereal, Trix.

Roanoke College

Roanoke College is a private, coeducational, four-year liberal arts college located in Salem, Virginia, United States, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia.

Roanoke Maroons

The Roanoke Maroons are the athletic teams that represent Roanoke College, located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia.

Contents

Mascot history

Rooney was created in 2009 after the submission of more than 350 suggestions by students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the College. From these suggestions, officials narrowed the options to six. These officials consisted of two groups: the Mascot Team, composed of various students, administrators, and alumni, and a professional company who works with mascots and logos. Public comment was also critical in creating the mascot as the process continued. [1]

In 2017, a generous donation to the college lead to the creation of a 14-foot-tall Rooney topiary that stands in near Kerr Stadium and a student residence hall. [2]

Topiary horticulture practice

Topiary is the horticultural practice of training perennial plants by clipping the foliage and twigs of trees, shrubs and subshrubs to develop and maintain clearly defined shapes, whether geometric or fanciful. The term also refers to plants which have been shaped in this way. As an art form it is a type of living sculpture. The word derives from the Latin word for an ornamental landscape gardener, topiarius, a creator of topia or "places", a Greek word that Romans also applied to fictive indoor landscapes executed in fresco.

Ever since Roanoke decided upon Rooney as the mascot in 2009, students who have portrayed the bird will wear the costume's feet at graduation to reveal their identity to other students and faculty members. [3]

Historically, Roanoke College has been known as the Maroons and officials ensured that this will not change due to Rooney's creation.

Rooney seen in the Roanoke College Athletics Logo. Roanoke Athletic Logo.png
Rooney seen in the Roanoke College Athletics Logo.

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References

Roanoke College