Three Rivers holds contest to get residents' ideas for a town mascot

Three Rivers is asking its residents to get creative — the eastern P.E.I. community is holding a contest to establish a mascot.

The eastern P.E.I. town's chief administrative officer, John Jamieson, said Three Rivers is “maturing,” and choosing a representative mascot could help create community pride. 

“We host several festivals during the year and several sporting events,” he said. “We just thought that having a mascot that is recognizable is a great way to build community engagement and have some fun.”

Jamieson said residents of the relatively new town — several former municipalities, including Cardigan, Montague and Georgetown, amalgamated to form Three Rivers in 2018 — have been asking for a mascot.

“When you're building a community, there's a lot of boxes to check. Mascot is probably a little bit down the line,” he said. 

“We're at the point now where we're ready to take that step.” 

Jamieson pointed to his own background in agriculture and the P.E.I. Potato Board’s use of a mascot as an example. He said they can be “a great way to market a community if you have something that's unique and recognizable.”

The town is looking for a mascot that “embodies the spirit of Three Rivers” and reflects its history and natural environment. Jamieson pointed to the community being connected by the Brudenell, Cardigan and Montague rivers.

“This is the time and no better way to build that [than] to have people involved in selecting and submitting ideas of what the mascot looks like,” Jamieson said.

“That's why we went to the community, because we have a lot of creative, smart people that are a lot more creative than someone like me.”

Jamieson didn't know how many ideas have been submitted, but he said many residents have spoken to town staff about their intention to contribute.

The contest is comparable to the town issuing a tender for a project, he said. The submissions will be sealed until Jan. 31, then will go to council for consideration.

Jamieson said the council meeting to choose the mascot will be public. He expects that will happen in February.

The mascot will then be professionally designed and the costume built, he said, and the contest winner will be recognized at a launch later this year.