Here's how a local business owner is trying to get Oconomowoc High School a new mascot costume

An area businessman who helped lead a project that painted the Oconomowoc High School mascot on the side of Grill 164 last year is now raising funds for a new mascot costume to match.

Joe Boysa, who runs Dynamic Faux Finishing in Oconomowoc, is leading a fundraising effort to get a new mascot costume, essentially an updated Rocky the Raccoon, for Oconomowoc High School. Boysa said he is trying to raise $9,000 to pay for the project.

Once the funds are raised, the mascot will be made by Olympus Group, a Milwaukee-based company, which has created mascot costumes for the Milwaukee Brewers' Famous Racing Sausages and the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Bucky the Badger, among others. 

"When this is all said and done, Oconomowoc will have the nicest, if not one of the nicest, mascots in the Midwest," Boysa said. 

The idea

Boysa said he wanted to update the school's mascot and have it match the new logo on the side of Grill 164. He said he spoke with Oconomowoc High School Principal Jason Curtis, as well as the school's athletic director, Kevin Flegner, about the need for a new mascot. 

"I went to the high school principal and I said, 'We need a new mascot. The one that we have is old and deteriorating, and it is not in the likeness of the new mascot, new logo that you have,'" said Boysa, who offered to raise the money needed to make it happen.

Boysa then met with Flegner about the idea, and Flegner approved. The school then gave approval for Boysa to do the project with Olympus Group. 

Curtis said in an email to Lake Country Now that he was thankful Boysa was willing to take the lead on the project.

"Our mascot is a symbol of our school unity across the many towns and municipalities that OHS represents," Curtis wrote. "Having an updated mascot will certainly help bring a sense of pride among the students, staff and community members who attend events at OHS." 

Getting students interested in being the mascot

The fundraising effort should also raise interest from students who could potentially wear the new costume, Flegner said.

He said Oconomowoc's existing mascot costume is starting to fall apart.

"It's also very uncomfortable for our kids to wear, so I understand why they don't want to," Flegner said. "So we're hoping with this new mascot, with all the new technology that's built into it, it'll make it more attractive for kids to want to be in there and not sweat so bad."

Flegner said that a student has expressed interest in being the new mascot if and when the new mascot costume is ready to go. He also said the school hopes to create a program for students to be involved with the new mascot. 

The program would involve the mascot being at athletic events, as well as at local parades, rallies, and even occasional elementary and middle school events.

"I think it will definitely be a positive," Flegner said.

Fundraising, project timeline

So far, Boysa said, he has raised $2,000 through donations from local businesses. Flegner said there would also be some support from fundraising efforts by groups like the school's student senate. 

Flegner said, ideally, the money would be raised by early spring 2020. Once the money is raised, the costume would take eight to 10 weeks to build during the summer, and could be ready by Aug. 1, 2020. If the money can be raised sooner, the timeline can be pushed up, Flegner said.

To donate to the mascot project, checks should be written out to Oconomowoc High School, according to Boysa. He said he will post fundraising updates on his Instagram page, @realfauxjoe, along with other information pertaining to the mascot, starting Sept. 9.

Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.