Yosef: mascot, outdoorsman, wedding crasher

Colin Wishneski, Reporter

May 29, 2025

From left, 2022 App State alumni Seth Samuelson, Emily Doub and Carleigh Scott. Courtesy of Emily Doub.

On April 10, Ansley Puckett and Robert Armstrong were married at The Homewood in Asheville in a simple ceremony, where nothing out of the ordinary transpired.

Afterward, Puckett and Armstrong, two App State graduates from the class of 2022, hosted an afterparty for their family and friends. Soon, a large, bearded, flannel-clad silhouette appeared in the doorway. The App State fight song echoed on the dance floor. Yosef had arrived.

The wedding party poses with Yosef for a photo during the reception for bride Ansley Puckett and groom Robert Armstrong. Both Puckett and Armstrong are App State alumni. Courtesy of Martha Armstrong.

Puckett, a librarian and former Managing Editor of The Appalachian, and Armstrong, a Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit nurse, were not the only App State graduates in the crowd. Many of the newlyweds’ college friends were in attendance, and most of Armstrong’s family are alum of App State.

Yosef’s entrance was accompanied by cheers and fanfare from familiar faces. Yosef stuck around at the wedding party, danced with the attendees and posed for group photo ops.

“Everyone was surprised,” said Brandy Mullenax, Puckett’s mother. “Including me.”

From left, App State 1987 alumna Martha Armstrong, App State 1993 alumnus John Hendrick and App State 1992 alumna Rieppe Melton Hendrick pose with Yosef at the wedding in Asheville. Courtesy of Martha Armstrong.

Mullenax had the idea to book Yosef for her daughter’s wedding, and reached out through App State’s athletic page. She heard back that Yosef would be free on the day of the wedding, but never got a clear answer as to when and how he would arrive, or if he would at all. Still, App State’s beloved mascot came to bring Mountaineer pride to the party and the new couple.

“People who hadn’t danced all night got up,” Mullenax said. “It was definitely one of the best parts of the wedding.”

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