In 1975, at the Flint Hill School in Oakton, Va., a student gave Al Goddard a stuffed moose toy as a gift. The next week another student brought in a moose for Goddard, now a teacher at Bethesda's Landon School.
And so was born a 33-year tradition of moose for the 58-year-old, fourth grade teacher from Takoma Park. If he's lucky, that one random moose in 1975 may soon land him in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Goddard's classroom is now covered floor to ceiling with what he believes to be more than 1,000 pieces of moose paraphernalia, a Guinness record.
The Guinness goal began innocently enough: Landon student Alex Kimiavi, 10, of Great Falls, Va., was flipping through the record book when he came across the information for applying for recognition.
He brought the idea to Goddard, who thought it could be used as a learning opportunity. Since Kimiavi's discovery in September, Goddard has been crafting lessons around the many moose, teaching students to make the Powerpoint presentations and digital photographs necessary for the Guinness application.
In the coming weeks, the students will help Goddard take a full inventory of all the moose, one of the final steps in the application process.
Despite the classroom's small size, the inventory may be more difficult than it looks. There are stuffed moose, moose posters, and metal moose. A bumper stick that reads "Moose Springsteen: Born to Rut," with a cartoon moose standing in for the Boss in a version of Bruce Springsteen's famous album cover adorns one wall, while a sign welcoming students to "Moose Hall" hangs over the classroom's doorway.
Goddard estimated that he receives about 50 to 60 pieces a year from students.
The Guinness Book doesn't have a category for "most moose memorabilia," Goddard said, so the class isn't trying to take the crown from another moose-a-phile. As long as the class documents the moose accurately and provides the required paperwork, they will likely be accepted into the Book, Goddard said.
Inquiries to the Guinness Book of World Records were not answered.
Goddard is retiring this spring, so he couldn't wait to accumulate more moose items before applying for the record.
"It will be pretty sad, and I'll miss coming in here," Kimiavi said. "I was a fan of moose before kind of, but now I've learned a lot about them and I like them a lot more."
After retiring, Goddard will take many of the items with him, and he'll also auction some to raise money for the school.
Record collections
As Landon School teacher Al Goddard attempts to set a Guinness World Record for most moose memorabilia, some other record-setters from around the world have also found their collectable niche:
Largest collection of keychains: 41,418, by Brent Dixon of Valdosta, Ga.
Model cars: 8,128, by Michael Zarnock of Deerfield, N.Y.
Airplane sick bags: 5,468, by Niek K. Vermeulen of The Netherlands
Penguins (not live): 5,098, by Birgit Berends of Germany
