By Ellie Goldberg, Staff Writer
The morning of February fourth struck, and Instagram was blowing up with reposts reading “MISSING HAWK.” The seven foot wooden hawk, standing at the entrance of River Hill High School, was absent, and an upset rose throughout the student body of River Hill.
This Birthday Hawk greeted students and teachers at the beginning of every day, and parents of River Hill students had the opportunity to purchase a birthday sign. A woodworker from Howard County originally carved the hawk, and students painted the figure before it made its first appearance on the first day of school this year.
When River Hill Boosters posted that the hawk was missing, suspicions began to arise on who the perpetrator was. “It has to be someone from Reservoir High School, they’re just sorry they lost the men’s varsity basketball game, considering how close the game is and the fact they won the previous game,” speculated junior Greta Sue Hanson. Comments on the post hypothesized the same, with many accusing Reservoir students of having the hawk in their possession.
Some accused Atholton High School and Glenelg High School, other close rivals of River Hill. Former student of Atholton High School, Bob Lovell, explained, “Atholton has to have the hawk. We’re the closest to them and no one else would travel that far to retrieve it.”
On February 8th, Fox News even covered a story on the missing hawk, and students could see the headline, “Hawk Mascot Stolen from River Hill High School: Officials Searching for Answers” displayed on their televisions. In the story, the team asked for help from the community for any information about the possible whereabouts of the missing hawk.
Will the hawk return to its nest? That’s up to the community, an effort among everyone to bring back the hawk and prevent it from being stolen once again.