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The 鈥渟now days鈥� that disrupted many schools during last February鈥檚 storms mean that graduation time is stretching a bit longer into June than usual. In honor of this year鈥檚 grads and anyone else getting a little impatient for summer vacation, here are a few local school mascot fun facts.

Lake Washington Kangaroos (of Kirkland)

The 鈥淜angaroo鈥� name dates to the 1930s, when what鈥檚 now Lake Washington High School on Rose Hill was still called Kirkland High School, and still located in downtown Kirkland.

L-Dub is one of as few as only two high schools with a kangaroo as mascot; another is in Weatherford, Texas. That Lone Star kangaroo dates to before our own local Kangs; it was apparently named in the 1920s after the mascot of Austin College, also in Texas, in honor of a popular Weatherford teacher who attended that other institution.

Local Kangaroos are everywhere, and a few of them in the media biz shared their thoughts on being part of the marsupial brotherhood (full disclosure, I鈥檓 one, too).

Q13 anchor Bill Wixey, LWHS class of 鈥�85, wrote:

鈥淎s far as being a Lake Washington Kangaroo, I have always considered it a badge of honor. I鈥檓 very grateful to have grown up when I grew up and where I grew up. Many of the dearest friends I have in this world are Kangs 鈥� people who have that common bond: growing up in that sleepy little lake town that became a suburban Mecca.鈥�

Jeff Burnside, Seattle and Spokane journalist, LWHS class of 鈥�75, wrote:

鈥淎t Lake Washington High School, I found my professional path in life, I found some lifetime friends and confirmed exactly who I thought I was. But I was embarrassed that our mascot was the Kangaroos. C’mon, the Kangs?! Purple, no less!? Ugh. I considered mounting a campaign to change it. But, over time, I came to embrace all that that mascot represents just as I further embraced my high school experience and all that it represents in me. Thanks, L-Dub.”

Oddly enough, only Lake Washington High School shortens the full name to 鈥淜angs鈥�; at Weatherford High they go only by 鈥淜angaroos,鈥� and at Austin College, they shorten the name to 鈥溾�橰oos.鈥�

Also probably only at L-Dub: First-year students are called 鈥淛oeys.鈥�

As for the deep origins of the word 鈥淜angaroo,鈥� I was sad to read the busting of that had the word meaning, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know.鈥�

The Evergreen State College Geoducks

, chosen in 1971 when the school was founded, is the mollusk known as the Geoduck (pronounced, “GOOEY-duck”). This is what founding faculty member Dave Hitchens wrote sometime later about the origins of the geoduck as TESC鈥檚 mascot:

鈥淣obody knows how [ecology and natural history professor] Al Wiedemann聽, but he was very animated about pushing it as a mascot. However, the geoduck turned out to be the perfect mascot as he presented it to the faculty at Pack Forest Retreat [in Eatonville] in June 1971. While standing in front of a flag that he created representing sea, sand, and tide, Wiedemann gave five reasons why the geoduck should be the mascot of The Evergreen State College: permanence, versatility, flexibility, vulnerability, and non-aggressive. There were laughs throughout the presentation, but Al Wiedemann was dead serious on the subject.”

Knute Berger, a writer for Crosscut who graduated from Evergreen in one of the first classes back in the mid 1970s, wrote:

鈥淎s a journalist who covers the Northwest, I am glad to be a non-combatant in the Huskies vs. Cougars or Huskies vs Ducks wars, though I generally root for the Huskies. Often, when it comes up among newcomers, they can鈥檛 believe a geoduck is actually a real state college mascot. They look shocked when I tell them our Latin motto — Omina extares — translates as ‘Let It All Hang Out.'”

Franklin High School Quakers in Seattle鈥檚 Rainier Valley

The 鈥淨uaker鈥� name was supposedly suggested by Royal Brougham in 1920, when he was editor of the student paper. Brougham later became one of Seattle鈥檚 most famous sportswriters and had a street (formerly Connecticut Street; sorry, Hartfordians!) by the stadiums renamed after him.

The image of the school mascot sometimes resembles the guy on the Quaker Oats box, but it鈥檚 actually supposed to be Benjamin Franklin. As for who that guy on the oats box is, this is what the Quaker website says on its FAQ page:

Q: Who is the man on the Quaker Oats box? Is it William Penn?

A: The 鈥楺uaker man鈥� is not an actual person. His image is that of a man dressed in the Quaker garb, chosen because the Quaker faith projected the values of honesty, integrity, purity and strength.

There鈥檚 also a Franklin High School in Portland, Oregon with 鈥淨uakers鈥� as their mascot. However, they are nearing the end of a multi-year process to select a new name.

The Portland Public Schools website says 鈥淔ranklin is undergoing a mascot name change because its current identity, Quakers, has been found to violate district policy that forbids names with a religious affiliation.鈥�

Six alternatives have been chosen for the Portland school, and the school board is set to vote sometime before the end of this month to formally select from among Ambassadors, Chargers, Falcons, Firs, Lightning, or Thunderbolts.

As of Friday morning, Seattle Public Schools had not responded to an email sent midday Thursday about any possible plans to drop Seattle鈥檚 Quaker mascot.

In recent years, several local schools have changed their mascots to reflect changing attitudes, particularly toward Native American-themed mascot names. Port Townsend High School changed from the Redskins to the Redhawks in 2014, and Seattle University changed from the Chieftains to the Redhawks in 2000. In Eastern Washington, Richland High School鈥檚 鈥淏ombers鈥� mascot, with mushroom cloud logo inspired by the nearby Hanford project, remains controversial for some.

Meanwhile, writer, comedian and longtime television personality John Keister, from Seattle鈥檚 Franklin High School in the mid 1970s, wrote:

鈥淚t was really strange going to a high school in which the mascot was The Quakers, a nonviolent religious sect. Although, to be honest, I don鈥檛 think most of the student body had any idea what a Quaker was.聽 This was demonstrated before every game when banners went up featuring an angry looking Ben Franklin firing a musket with slogans like 鈥楰ill 鈥楨m Quakers!鈥� We did get one thing right however: we practiced a lot of nonviolent resistance on the football field.聽 And we smoked a lot of hemp, which I think the founding fathers were very fond of.鈥�

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