WOODBURY — No one knows exactly where it began — a combination of rumor, hearsay, and speculation — but the spoon has grown to become Nonnewaug High School’s unofficial mascot.

Students, especially those involved in athletics, have grown accustomed to seeing the spoon on the sidelines. NHS athletes are always excited to see their favorite giant-sized silverware back again.

“Everyone just loves the Spoon,” said Katie Farrell, senior at NHS and co-captain of the girls soccer team. “It just gets everyone hyped, honestly.”

Students and staff alike have all grown to love the Spoon, and while its origin and reasoning may still be a mystery to most, assistant principal and former athletic director Declan Curtin remembers it vividly.

“Back in 2018, I was told that I needed to get more fans at games, and [to] start building school spirit,” said Curtin. “People wanted to bring it to a new level.”

And so, the Spoon came to life.

“Our students decided that they wanted to have a spoon brought in,” said Curtin, noting that it was popular for athletes at the time to tell opponents they got “sauced” if they were defeated. “Next thing you know, the Spoon became like a cult figure. Everyone thought it was like a demigod; everyone was worshiping it.”

NHS coaches remember the Spoon’s arrival a bit differently.

“All of a sudden there was a spoon,” said Toby Denman, science teacher and boys soccer coach. “I think at first a lot of people were like, ‘Why is there a spoon?’ But then it was just the thing.”

Since its birth, The Spoon has been around the block a couple times.

“The Spoon has its share of stories to tell,” said Curtin.

One story in particular sticks out in Denman’s mind.

“There are dents on the floor in the gym from George Ulrich (a 2023 Nonnewaug graduate) running around during the pep rally banging the spoon on the floor,” said Denman.

“Not only has the spoon figuratively left its mark on Nonnewaug,” said Denman, “it’s also literally left its mark in the gymnasium.”

The Spoon has become a big part of Nonnewaug’s school community, and up until the class of 2021’s graduation, NHS had never really honored the Spoon in a way that counts.

“In 2021, little did we know that the seniors were gonna walk the Spoon in during graduation, [kneel] down in front of me, and deliver it to me,” Curtin said. “[They] said to deliver it off to the next class.”

At that graduation, a tradition was born.

“At that point, it became a part of the graduation ceremony,” said Curtin. “We walk into graduation, and the spoon is handed off symbolically from the graduating senior class to the rising senior class.”

The Spoon is of the utmost importance at Nonnewaug, and its customs and traditions exemplify that.

As for the excitement the Spoon brings to campus, according to Curtin, “other schools are very, very jealous of that.”

So when the Spoon was stolen a year and a half ago by students from rival Shepaug Valley High School during the basketball doubleheader in Washington, Conn., it might not have been a surprise, but it was certainly a shock.

“The game was really heated,” Denman said. “You know, a big rivalry. Sophie Pape [a 2023 Nonnewaug graduate] had the Spoon, and some kid from Shepaug was alleged to have … knocked her to the ground.”

When a ransom photo came out on social media, the outrage only grew.

“Somebody recorded themselves and was like, ‘We have your Spoon,’” Denman said.

Despite the dramatics of the Spoon’s captors, no ransom demands were met. In fact, NHS administrators were able to regain possession of the Spoon without much hassle.

“Due to some police work and some administrative flexing,” Curtin said, “we got it back pretty quickly.”

Because of the work of the administration and the police, they were able to return the Spoon to its rightful home: Nonnewaug.

Over the course of the years, the Spoon has been at the epicenter of some of Nonnewaug’s fondest memories, and has compiled years worth of stories to tell. Through all that NHS has been through the past six years, the Spoon has been there, and it still has many more years to come as campus’ most prized utensil.

This story was originally published on NHS Chief Advocate on September 30, 2024.