How did a plastic tube come to represent squad spirit?
Herkie: The spirit stick got started at a camp out at the University of Redlands (CA). We had a group out there who were really characters. They had lots of spirit but almost no talent. So I decided they had to have some recognition. I broke a little stick off a tree and awarded them the “spirit stick” for their unusual spirit. Then we started doing this at all the camps—until the kids started stripping the trees on the campuses making their own spirit sticks. The next summer and I had 1,000 dowel sticks cut and painted red, white and blue. At camp, we played little games we did with it; you’d raise the spirit stick up and everybody’d yell, then you’d lower it and they’d cut off. We started awarding the spirit stick to the groups who showed the most spirit each day, and whoever won it at the end of the week—or three times during the week— got to take it home with them. The spirit stick is the most outstanding award you can get. It’s the symbol for spirit. AC: You also invented another
