Helder Frizado knows the inevitable will happen – and as much as he doesn't like to think about it, he's preparing for the farewell.

If you've never met Frizado, you're missing out on something special. Then again, if you've been to a George Brown College varsity game and watched the Huskies mascot, now you know the secret behind the furry enlarged toy.

He's "Helder the Husky", the tall stuffed animal that is speechless. Surprisingly scary to some, youngsters and even adults, take Frizado out of the costume he wears to excite and entertain people and he's one of the nicest people around.

Frizado, or "Helder the Husky", is the No. 1 mascot in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association.

But Frizado, who loves dancing and has plenty of endurance from his days as a cross-country runner, had more than the edge. He had the audience on his side after a superb performance that he also choreographed, which included songs from the 80s and 90s.

"When I had the crowd going, and knew it was my best performance, I thought I had the competition won," said Frizado, who graduated from George Brown in Mechanical Engineering a year go. "I've won things before, but this one was very important to me – and a nice way to close out my time at George Brown."

Frizado left George Brown after three years of entertaining audiences in the stuffy uniform, one that heats up quickly, but returned to help out after things didn't work out with his successor.

"Six months after I left, I came back but this could very well be it," said Frizado, who is planning to continue his studies, but this time in Automotive Engineering at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology.

The 23-year old Frizado has had moments when adults and youngsters haven't liked mascots, so his challenge has always been to find ways to make people happy – usually by shaking his head, striking a pose or doing something silly.

"Putting smiles on the faces of people is what it's about and if I can do that to one person than I know my mission is accomplished," said Frizado, who once needed a few weeks to recover from a muscle injury while doing the splits. "It can get hot in that uniform, but you also have to be careful in routines."

Frizado may have taken home a trophy for his brilliance in competition, and even remembers his seven-minute audition as a rookie back in 2010, but it could all come to an end at the George Brown Athletic Banquet on April 4 at the Marriott Downtown Eaton Centre Hotel. - DG