TURNERS FALLS — Powertown, Thunder, Raptors and Chargers are still in the running for being Turners Falls High School’s next logo, replacing the controversial “Indian” that was ousted last February.
The community will soon have a chance to vote on their choice for the new logo, and the finalist will be formalized by the school committee afterwards.
The logo task force’s 10 volunteer members and two School Committee seat hopefuls, Jennifer Lively and Mike Langknecht, were present for the meeting on April 9. Each task force member chose their top three selections from the list of finalists: Coyotes, Powertown, Raptors, Pride, Thunder, Turbines, Chargers and Torrents.
Each member stated their rationale to support their choices, made with help from polling community members on social media and talking with students.
While “Powertown” was a top favorite among both the community and the task force, some task force members expressed concerns about the name.
Firstly, no one was quite sure what “Powertown” logo artwork would look like. Also, previous feedback from the community stated that the nickname “Powertown” may exclude the other Montague villages outside of Turners Falls: Montague Center, Montague City, Millers Falls and Lake Pleasant.
This nickname could also potentially leave out Gill and Erving students. However, the name still remained a top contender, so the community can decide.
Sheffield Elementary uses “Pride” as its nickname and the task force decided that Sheffield should be able to keep their own identity. Therefore, “Pride” was nixed.
“Thunder” came out as a top choice because the high school already has performed a popular cheer “Thunderation” at games for generations.
Sophomore Korey Martineau, the only student member of the task force, stated that there is a tradition of stomping on the bleachers to support sports teams and the AC/DC song “Thunderstruck” is also played as Turners Falls athletes arrive on the field.
A graphic depicting a royal blue lightening bolt to accompany “Thunder” as a nickname was well-received by the community on social media.
Chargers, Turbines and Torrents were also popular with the committee due to Turners Falls’ use of hydroelectric power, including the dam and Cabot Station. According to Task Force Member Alana Martineau, a horse could be used to depict a “Chargers” nickname.
The other top contender, “Raptors,” could be shown as either a bird of prey or a dinosaur.
After the discussion, task force members took another vote on each member’s top three selections.
“Thunder” received 10 votes. “Raptors” and “Powertown” each received five. “Chargers” received four.
Members put forth a motion to send these four options to the community, where two or three finalists will be selected.
The committee decided unanimously that Turners Falls already has been nicknamed “Powertown” for years, therefore the nickname would continue to stand in conjunction with any new logo chosen.
A community voting date has not yet been finalized, but the logo task force will meet Monday at 6:30 p.m. in Turners Falls High School’s staff lounge. Here, members will discuss how to move forward with the community vote to involve students, alumni and residents.
Reach Christie Wisniewski at: cwisniewski@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 280.