Rupert's Journey

Image Credit: Sabina Shuman

Walking around the Reed campus, you may have noticed a poster such as the one above. As it states, Rupert, a cherished member of the Reed campus, has gone missing. However, there is much more to the story than the poster suggests.

For those unaware, Rupert is a McFish sandwich-styled rocking playground toy, manufactured sometime during the 1970s. It is unknown how or when he came to Reed, but he has been on campus since before 2006,  and served as a memorial to Rupert J. Page ‘94, who passed away in 2016. Rupert has historically been located in the playground outside of The Growing Seeds Childcare Center, located on Reed’s campus, for the amusement and entertainment of Reedies and locals alike, and once was kept companion by a second identical toy, which broke around a decade ago and has since been laid to rest. Until recently, Rupert was located directly outside of the Gray Campus Center, but since his recent unannounced disappearance, it comes as no surprise that students are clamoring to find what fate has befallen him.

I can confirm that Rupert is safe and sound. He was neither stolen nor broken, and remains in the custody of Reed College. However, the story may not conclude how many students might hope. A month before the beginning of this school year, the swing sets around Reed, the childcare center playground, and Rupert, who was located outside the Gray Campus Center, were inspected by a certified playground inspection firm, who pointed out the potential dangers of Rupert, and other toys of the same style. Potential issues such as head trauma, pinch points, impalement on handles, and Rupert being atop a hard concrete surface were all addressed as well-documented issues that have led these types of toys to be removed from playgrounds across the country en masse throughout the last decade.

When asked to comment, Director of Facilities Operations Steve Yeadon pointed out that many children could access Rupert due to the high number of children attending Reed’s childcare center, as well as the combination of Reed’s open campus boundaries and proximity to neighborhoods with many children. These circumstances made it likely that someone might get hurt riding Rupert, for which Reed College would be liable. Yeadon therefore stated he felt he had no choice but to have Rupert removed, and that he “would be remiss in [his] duties to leave Rupert in action and have a child get maimed or otherwise injured.” Despite this grim news, there is a silver lining– Rupert is, by all accounts, safe and sound. He has been securely packed away in the possession of Facilities, and plans are being made to display Rupert on campus in the future, even if his riding days are now behind him.