By Sterling McGinn
The Village of Newberry mascot, a very friendly moose, has been making appearances around town lately adding some cheer to the locals. But unfortunately, in the process, he forgot his name.
Thanks to local youth Jackson Hood, Newberry’s moose is called “Mooz.”
“Mooz” is Anishinaabe for moose, which translates to “twig-eater.”
“We felt that this is a wonderful way of incorporating the local heritage into the village,” said Village President Catherine Freese.
The moose mascot was created many years ago by local artist Gina Harman. The moose had tried very hard to remember its name and without any luck, decided to ask for help in finding a new name, Freese said.
To help, Administrative Assistant Ericka Hollingshead organized a “Name the Moose” campaign for the village. Children aged 4-12 who live in the village, who belong to Tahquamenon Area Schools, or the Tahquamenon Area Homeschool Community were invited to suggest a new name for the moose.
“We reached out to the wonderful children for the name for the moose and received several questionnaires back,” Freese said.
The names were very creative and led to the council being faced with a hard decision to pick a new name. The Newberry Village Council voted on “Mooz” at their June regular meeting, however, the board decided to hold off on the announcement until the winner had been notified.
At their July 21 regular meeting, Hood received congratulations from the council, village officials and from Mooz himself. Hood was also presented with a certificate, a stuffed moose complete with the name “Mooz”, and a Village of Newberry hat.
