George Fox Giraffes!
Illustration by Breanna Newburn
Article by Avery Duffy
NEWBERG, Ore. – For over 30 years, George Fox University (GFU) has clung to the Bruin mascot. Strong, powerful and known for their preference of solitude, the Bruins don’t seem to fit the branding tag GFU pitches. Not to mention, the George Fox Bruins doesn’t have a ring to it.
This is why GFU’s mascot will undergo a rebrand, discarding the overuse of bears and switching to: The Giraffes. While “George Fox Giraffes” has a much better flow, there’s also a deeply rooted purpose behind this change.
GFU is a Quaker university with values such as peace, simplicity, equality and community. Bears, especially bruins, don’t emulate this.
Giraffes, on the other hand, are stereotyped as gentle, empathetic, supportive and community-oriented.
“GFU is adamant that their branding should work cohesively,” says Raffe Gire, member of the board of trustees at GFU. “Having a mascot that supports the religious foundation GFU is built upon is key.”
The giraffe not only highlights GFU’s values, but solidifies purpose through each core quality associated with the university.
Many changes will follow this rebrand to ensure the Bruins are wiped and the Giraffes come in at full speed. From uniforms to cheer chants, logos and the “mama bear” statue, everything will be switched to the giraffes by the start of the 2026 Fall semester.
Organia Zew, a partner with GFU who will be conducting the logistics of this rebrand, says her plan is to start small. She wants the changes to start with things like stickers, weights at Hadlock Student Center, merchandise and information pamphlets.
“The hard part is designing the new mascot-included logo,” Zew explains. “Once we finish that though, it’s easy to put it on everything.”
Pennington will still be the university mascot's name, as it holds sentimental value, but his costume will be remade to include an eight foot long neck. The greatest effort of this rebrand will be replacing the old “mama bear” statue near Bauman Auditorium with a 20 foot tall statue of a giraffe.
Nick Long, the chosen designer and construction manager taking on this project, says it’s crucial the measurements are right. “The statue's height represents an average height of a true giraffe and the neck length of the mascot costume is a true average length for a giraffe's neck.”
While this re-brand of the mascot can be seen as a silly, purposeless change, it is detail orientated and intentional. The GFU faculty want the new mascot to highlight all the incredible qualities of the student body.
Come Fall of 2026, make sure you are prepared to learn new chants, take pictures with Pennington the giraffe and never forget that the George Fox Giraffes stand tall!
