By Tim Binnall
A newly built public school in Florida has chosen a rather unlikely character as its official mascot: Sasquatch. According to a local media report, Lakeside Academy in the city of Saint Augustine will open its doors to K-8 students in St. Johns County this coming September. In addition to the usual administrative tasks that came about in creating a new school from scratch was the challenge of choosing its mascot. Out of all the possible options available, Bigfoot emerged as a surprising candidate thanks to a cutout of the cryptid that has long occupied a patch of woods in the neighborhood where Lakeside Academy is located.
While the possibility of Sasquatch as the school's official mascot is said to have generated "extensive criticism online," Lakeside principal Jesse Gates told a local newspaper that the idea proved to be popular enough that the famed cryptid was ultimately chosen for the honor. "Having always been a lover of the Bigfoot lore," he mused, "I was very happy to see this was the community's choice." His appreciation for the new Sasquatch mascot was echoed by resident Craig Pivnick, who observed that "everybody kinda always picks a traditional animal ... you never really hear about the Sasquatch." In a video unveiling the school's new mascot and logo, Lakeside called upon its future students to emulate the iconic cryptid and "strive to be legendary."