Once upon a time, Frederick the Alaskan Brown Bear was part of an educational exhibit program at Appalachian State University. Frederick and the other exhibits visited many public schools in the region during each school year, but Frederick spent his summer vacations in the Instructional Materials Center (IMC).
In the early 1980s, the Exhibits office closed and Frederick came to live in the IMC. The children who came to see him through the years loved him. They would pat his fur and give him lots of bear hugs.
In fact, they loved him with such enthusiasm that after a while his fur began to look less fluffy and his claws lost their shine. Soon, the children said, “Poor Frederick, he’s missing some claws, his fur is getting messy, and he looks so sad.”
Then one day, Rex and Susan Emerson came and gave Frederick a makeover. They brushed his teeth, replaced missing claws, and most importantly fluffed up his fur.
Right away the children noticed the big change. They patted his fluffy fur and said, “Frederick, you look so handsome!” Most importantly, they gave him lots of hugs and Frederick wasn’t sad anymore.
The End