Philadelphia mascot glamour hogs like the Phanatic and Gritty may get all the headlines, but there’s plenty of lesser-known mascots working just as hard to get the word out for their particular organization or cause.
In fact, the region seems to have a higher ratio of people to mascots than other towns, writes Stephanie Farr for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
And they cover everything from hep B awareness to hoagies.
Here in Delaware County, it comes as no surprise that Wawa’s got a mascot. Actually, it’s got two.
More people are familiar with Wawa’s Wally Goose but they rolled out Shorti a few years after the actual Shorti hoagie was introduced in 1992.
Shorti’s a bipedal Wawa hoagie from Delco who is much larger than his 6-inch counterpart.
His favorite season is Hoagiefest and his mascot idols are fellow Wawa mascot Wally Goose and Swoop.
You’ll find him at Hoagie Day and he’s an avid fan of the chain’s Hoagies for Heroes hoagie-building contest.
“I like to think of myself as an ambassador of the hoagie, spreading love and joy for everything that makes the hoagie special!” he said.
Read more about Shorti in the Philadelphia region in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
How did the practice of having sports mascots start?
