Catherine Twing / Castleton Spartan

SGA treasurer Tyler Anderson smiled because Sparty is back

After being MIA for nearly two months, Sparty has been returned to his rightful place in the SGA office.

“Over the weekend the Sparty costume was found in the Glenbrook Gym public ladies room by Fred Colvin [custodial staff member] while cleaning the gym,” said Matt Patry, director of student activities.

There were initial rumors that Sparty had been found in at the stadium, but Patry said a phone call with maintenance worker Kevin Treadway confirmed that it had been found in Glenbrook.

Reported previously by The Spartan, the costume, valued at $1,700, was discovered to be missing on Oct. 26 and hadn’t been seen since Sep. 28. It was being stored in the SGA office under a desk while the storage closet was being re-shelved.

The found costume was inspected on the morning of Nov. 23 by Patry and SGA Treasurer Tyler Anderson and was found to be in good condition with no damage. All of the items were in the travel bag and although there was a smell of perfume, that may have been from a previous use, according to Patry.

Some credit Sparty’s return to the media coverage by university, regional and national news outlets.  

“I guess that extra buzz between WCAX, The Spartan and The Rutland Herald really helped,” said SGA President Mariah O’Hara.

Regardless of the reason for his appearance or disappearance, members of the Castleton community are quite excited about Sparty’s return.

“I was at the high school working when Matt Patry texted me saying that the mascot had been found. I was super excited!” O’Hara said. “I think we all missed having our Sparty cheering on our Spartans. But now he’s back and that’s what counts!”

“I feel as though when it was gone it took away a piece of our community and now that it’s back, our community is stronger than ever,” said SGA Secretary Matt Gay.

Junior Tony Sawyer agrees that Sparty is a glue that holds the spirit of Castleton together.

“It feels great to finally have the mascot back. When it was gone I felt like part of the identity of Castleton was gone with it, but now that it’s back I feel complete again,” Sawyer said.