October 9, 2023
By BARTON HENLEY
Rutherford County Schools
Bolt, an over six-foot-tall horse decked out in Oakland gear, made his first public appearance as he looked to bring excitement to the Chargers fanbase during their homecoming game.
Principal Brad Decker said the mascot has been in the works for quite a while.
“We’ve been waiting on him to get here for a few months,” said Decker. “He is a really fun, interactive piece of our school spirit now.”
Decker led the charge for the mascot to increase school spirit for current students while hoping to do the same for future students.
“We wanted to get a mascot to help build community and school spirit,” said Decker. “We want to include our feeder schools and make our elementary students excited about coming to OMS.”
Decker thinks Bolt will be able to help some students with the transition from elementary to middle school.
“We want to use Bolt to help us build a community here that involves not just our students but those schools close in proximity, too,” says Decker.
Oakland Middle currently accepts students from Lascassas and Walter Hill elementary schools, both Rutherford County Schools.