GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — Sports teams are the glue that help hold our communities together, and the heart of any organization is usually big and fluffy.
The mascots for the West Michigan Whitecaps, Grand Rapids Griffins, Rise and Gold really stand out in a crowd - and that's the point. But why do they do it? To find this out - I would need to gain access to this closely guarded secret society of West Michigan mascots.
Once on the inside of their world, finding out what made them tick was easy.
"The smiles on everybody's face at the end of the day," Crash, of the West Michigan Whitecaps told me in our exclusive interview. "They [the fans], come here for a good time and we really aim to provide that so I mean, that's really just what I'm striving for every day is to make sure everybody leaves you with a smile".
And every mascot I spoke with told me the same thing.
"Seeing the looks and the smiles on the fan faces in the kids," said Buckets with the Grand Rapids Gold.
It’s the fans, not the fame that keep them here.
"Bringing kids joy, you know when you see them," Finn with the Grand Rapids Griffins told me with a smile. "It's just an amazing feeling.
“Favorite part for me is just putting smiles on people's faces," added Finn's bigger buddy Griff. "Getting the crowd hyped. And just leaving memories for people when they come."
As the most recognizable faces of our local teams, mascots are the four-fingered hands that reach out into the community.
"I work a lot with special needs hockey organizations, I go to their practices, and I'll skate around with them when they're practicing, and hang out with them and just their joy makes me happy makes me smile," said Finn.
What I found most surprising though was it’s not all glitz and glamour in front of a roaring crowd. They put in just as much work behind the scenes.
But at the end of the day, this Mascot’s true purpose is to be a familiar face in an ever-changing sport.
"The players from the team move on, but the mascot will never move on," said Griff. "They will leave memories for the kids. And yes, they can watch the players but the mascots will always leave somewhat of an impact on the kids."
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