Derby students came back to a new panther staring down at them in the main gym.

Principal Tim Hamblin was the one who set everything up for it.

“When we first developed the athletic logo several years ago, we had the peek-a-boo design sort of just for fun, but we really didn’t have a place to use,” Hamblin said. “For many years that wall has just been blank and ugly. The green stripe was painted on it a few years ago. I thought at that time that could be the perfect place for it. I just had to wait until I had raised enough money to pay for it. Important to note that zero or NO tax dollars were spent on the project.”

Hamblin isn’t finished, though.

“The gym panther is just one of two projects I have planned,” he said. “The other will be just inside the main doors of the commons. It is based on an idea I had to go along with the theme that we all come from different places but enter through one door to become Panthers. A little silly, but the project will be very cool, also. It is a pretty big-scale project, too, so I may have to wait until spring break or even summer to have it completed.”

The artist for both murals below is John Thatcher.