He’s an unofficial mascot and a supposed good luck charm. His name is Bernard, a plush frog that is beloved among participants of The Squash & Education Alliance.

Bernard has his own Instagram following which has now grown to nearly 250 followers. He can be seen in a handful of photos posing with medals, trophies, and elite squash players including Adrian Grant who was at one time ranked in the top 10 in the world. 

The stuffed animal’s ascension to prominence started with 16-year-old StreetSquash student Janae Garcia. The frog was a gift to her from her older sister two years ago. Then earlier this year, she decided to bring Bernard along to a squash tournament, hosted by fellow SEA program, Access Youth Academy, in San Diego. 

One of Janae’s teammates, Julian, said he wanted to take a picture with Bernard. From there, the rest of the StreetSquash team wanted to follow suit. 

“When we got to San Diego, we didn’t really have time to do anything but be at the courts,” Janae said. “Someone suggested I take a picture of Bernard with one of the Youth Access Academy kids. I posted the pictures to Instagram and it gained quite a few followers.” 

Those initial pictures were posted to her personal Instagram account. But followers thought the pictures warranted the creation of a separate Instagram account. Thus, @Bernard_TheSquasher was born. 

After Bernard’s journey to San Diego, a teammate declared that he was a good luck charm and the stuffed amphibian should make appearances at additional tournaments in the future. 

“We got pictures of him with trophies, a bunch of SEA kids, and it just sort of became a thing,” Janae said. “Other SEA kids started to recognize Bernard and ask for a picture. It’s nice. You make new friends through Bernard.” 

Janae says there’s truth to Bernard’s good luck charm. Close followers of StreetSquash would notice it as well. Bernard appeared on the head of a StreetSquash student during a team picture moments before students left on their journey to Philadelphia for SEA Team Nationals. Two days later, StreetSquash had two championship trophies.

Janae estimates Bernard has been an in-person witness to eight tournaments so far. Members of the squash community can expect to see him at a lot more, especially SEA events. 

As far as the frog’s name, he’s carrying on the memory of a dead plant. Janae says her sister used to have a lot of plants, one of which she named Bernard. Following Bernard the plant’s demise, Janae’s sister purchased the stuffed animal and named him Bernard Jr. Though the plant can no longer grow, the allure of Bernard the Squasher will grow indefinitely.