Mascot Marko Makes a Mark

By Gerry Turcotte – Originally published in The Catholic Register

Colleges embrace their first official mascot

I have done a great many things as a university president, some expected and others completely unanticipated. Most senior roles have a clause added to their contracts that says, ‘and other duties as required,’ and I have interpreted that clause in generous and varied ways: working in shelters, building new learning spaces, getting dunked by freezing water for an ice bucket challenge.

What I didn’t ever expect to do was to develop and launch a mascot. And yet, as St. Mark’s College and Corpus Christi College in Vancouver prepared to celebrate major anniversaries (70 and 25 years respectively), it occurred to me that we needed a playful symbol of that celebration. As it happens, St. Mark’s is represented by a winged lion—and so, Marko was born … so to speak.

To say that he was an instant hit would be an understatement. Both the miniature and the full-sized embodiment quickly charmed students, staff and community members. The small initial supply we had available for purchase (with the proceeds going to our community food bank) was snapped up in minutes. It is humbling and hilarious to be upstaged by a cute, furry creature, but difficult to begrudge the impact he has had on community gatherings already.

St. Mark is represented by a winged lion because the opening of his gospel begins with John the Baptist’s voice ‘roaring like a lion in the wilderness’ (1:3). In Revelations (4:7), St. Mark is referred to as one of the four winged beings surrounding God’s throne. The association is further compounded by a Venetian legend that tells of an angel appearing as a winged lion before St. Mark, saying, ‘Peace be with you, Mark, my evangelist. Here your body will rest.’

While it is early days now in the story of our own mascot, he has a presence on campus already. As part of our anniversary celebrations, we also installed a new statue of St. Mark by famed Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz, and at its foot is a miniature winged lion, holding court at the centre of our campus.

As we read in Psalms, ‘in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge’ (57:1). Or, as one of our students said, ‘I am Marko, hear me roar!’

Thank you to Jenny Cheng for her generous support in bringing Marko, our beloved mascot, to life.

Her gift funded the creation of the full-size mascot costume, supported a student honorarium for Marko’s appearances at events, and helped produce Marko stuffies. As a visible symbol of school spirit, Marko brings people together wherever he goes – even around the world! Proceeds from stuffie sales have also supported our Community Food Bank, extending further impact to those in need.

This article was published in the 2026 edition of A Year in Review. For more stories like this about the Corpus Christi and St. Mark’s College community, read the full publication at the link below.