It is a widely unknown fact that Flagler's first official mascot was a real-life Saint Bernard named Brandy. Long before the arrival of the gold-crowned lion we know today, Brandy represented the spirit of Flagler College during its earliest days.
In the early years of Flagler athletics, when the College enrolled only women, the student athletes proudly referred to themselves as the "Saints," even before an official mascot was introduced. According to the student newspaper, The Gargoyle, in early 1971, students expressed a desire for a mascot to represent them and serve as a unifying symbol.
In response, the family of Janet Wiseman donated a 13-week-old female St. Bernard puppy to the College. The puppy was temporarily housed on the second floor of the women’s dormitory, Ponce de Leon Hall.
To make the St. Bernard puppy truly a part of the Flagler community, a school-wide ballot contest was held to name the new mascot. Brandy became the first official Flagler College mascot in October 1971. A doghouse was reportedly planned to be built on campus, according to The Gargoyle, but there is no confirmed record of it ever being constructed.
In October 1977, after a noticeable absence of Brandy on campus, The Gargoyle published an article titled “Missing Mascot Mystery Solved.” It revealed that after a few years on campus, “the students who were responsible for caring for Brandy lost interest in having a mascot when other activities filled their time,” resulting in her “not getting enough attention or proper care.” For this reason, and due to the hot and humid climate of Florida, believed to be “not suitable for this breed of dog” at the time, Brandy was eventually relocated to Virginia, where she happily lived on a farm owned by the brother of a former Flagler employee, Ann Trenner. Trenner said she was “doing very well” at her new home in letters to the College. At the time, there were no plans to replace her as the official mascot.
Nearly four years after Brandy’s departure from campus, in February 1981, the lion was officially adopted as the new Flagler College mascot. The logo, now visible all across campus, was designed by award-winning emeritus professor Enzo Torcoletti and was modeled after lion paintings on the dining hall ceiling.
The lion was chosen for its strong symbolic ties to St. Augustine and its frequent presence in campus architecture and throughout the city. It appears in the City’s official coat of arms, at the base of the Bridge of Lions, in the Ponce courtyard, and in the Ponce dining hall.
In 2011, a student-led naming contest was organized by the Student Affairs Department to officially name the mascot. The winning name? Lewis. Possibly a nod to Lawrence Lewis Jr., the founder of the College.
From those humble beginnings, Lewis has continued to evolve and become a key presence on Flagler’s campus. Thanks to the generosity of several donors, in 2021 he received a refreshed costume, which he still wears today.
Most recently, in 2023, Lewis was fully digitized and now serves as the head of the College’s AI chatbot. Through text messaging and website chat, Lewis interacts with students by checking in, celebrating milestones, and connecting them to important campus resources.
Today, Lewis the Lion is more than just a mascot. He’s a symbol of Flagler College’s pride and spirit, uniting students and the broader Flagler community both in person and digitally.
