Once a Husky, always a Husky.
In the foyer of The Morgan School stands a statue of a Husky who holds a story much greater than many would believe. This Husky was moved from the old Morgan school at 26 Killingworth Turnpike and was donated to Morgan in honor of a very special member of The Morgan family, Ed Hidek.
On February 26, 2006, an honorary member of the Morgan Community, Ed Hidek, passed away, touching the hearts of many. Ed Hidek had always demonstrated the strong qualities of a Husky, and after his passing many thought it was best to continue his legacy through The Morgan Husky.
Hidek was a huge part of the community and his passing was devastating for many. Multiple members of the Morgan community believed that Hidek should have something in the school in honor of him, and a Husky was the best way to represent all the positive, strong qualities that he brought.
Ed Hidek loved sports and his hometown, Clinton, and he demonstrated that every day. He had been a coach at The Morgan School since 1982. With his coaching, he guided the girl’s softball team to four state championships. He also worked as an assistant basketball coach for Joe Grippo, where their teams won two state championships.
Ed was a member of the Park and Recreation Commission, serving as chairman at the time The Peters Recreational Complex was built.
According to the Morgan History Booklet from the Morgan Alumni Association, “In 2007, the Student Council, with the help of Laura Luther and Mike Neff, donated this husky to the school in memory of Ed Hidek.” Clinton Crossings Outlets donated $25,000 to The Morgan School four years after its opening, and a portion of this donation was used to fund this memorial statue.
Wrongly distinguished as “Balto” because of the printing on the front of the statue, the Husky had never acquired a name. Balto is the company that created this statue for The Morgan School.
Many aren’t educated on the importance of not only this statue in particular but also the significance of the Husky as The Morgan School mascot.
Sophomore Gwen Madura, who just recently noticed the Husky statue, said “I only thought it was there because it was our mascot. I didn’t know there was history behind it.”
In 1954, there was a contest held to create the husky for The Morgan School. In voting by the student body, the husky won by a substantial lead. Results came in February 1954, and the Husky has been the mascot ever since.
In 2012, UConn issued a cease and desist order against Morgan claiming that the Morgan Husky was too similar to the UConn mascot. UConn had ordered Morgan to remove this logo from everywhere it was located. However, UConn had no problem with the husky being the mascot of Morgan; it just needed to be distinctly different.
In December 2013, the new logo was approved and has several hidden Ms on it to identify it as the Morgan Husky. Interestingly enough, after all of the commotion with the logo, UConn ended up changing its logo in 2013 as well.
The Morgan School depicts the Husky mascot in various ways throughout the school, but the statue of the Husky located in the foyer is not just for show, it tells a story of the life of someone who was the perfect example of an honorary member of the Morgan community.
