Great Prank At Mayo Clinic, Rochester – Same Suit Used In Many Staff Photos

Next time you take a look thru the Mayo Clinic Directory, pay attention to what people are wearing. You might notice the quietest prank/joke in the history of awesome things.

3 Mayo Staff Members Had Funny Idea About A Suit

According to the Mayo Clinic, three people, Zachary Fogarty, Computational Biology; Briant Fruth, Clinical Trials and Biostatistics; and Drew Seisler, Program for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, shared an office at Mayo Clinic here in Rochester, Minnesota, and hatched a plan to match in their next Mayo Staff Photo.

"We thought it would be fun if we all just wore the same jacket and tie, and a blue shirt with it," Seisler says.

Fogarty ended up with a free tan suit when a colleague left Mayo, so he matched that with a tie he bought off a clearance rack, and the plan was hatched. They'd all show up in blue dress shirts at the same time, and just swap the tie and jacket between photos.

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Did Anyone Say Anything?

According to the story, the photographers noticed it and then saw them swapping clothes, and they let her in on the plan. And eventually, so were 26 others.

You see, the plan wasn't just to have the three of them match, but to invite others to get in on it. When they found out someone was due for their Mayo Staff Photo, they'd let 'em know right away.

Eventually, it spread by word of mouth and all you had to do was find 'em, grab the jacket and tie, and off you went. Return it when you're done.

The Mayo Clinic Distinguished Gentlemen of Mayo Clinic

That's what they call the now 29 loosely affiliated people, the common thread being their threads...though they have no rules on who gets in. Anyone, any gender, any time. The first woman to join was Drew Seisler's mom Jennifer Seisler.

Covid-19 Temporarily Slows Membership

First, the photo department shut down, so that put an instant stop to the group. Then, Fogarty, the Keeper of the Suit, started working remotely. A new Suit Holding Spot had to be found and quick or membership may wane.

Fortunately, Christine Kirt, his wife, works on-site and now houses the suit and tie in her office. In a hermetically sealed case, one hopes.

PERSONAL NOTE - This is exactly the kinda low-key hi-jinks I love. It is clever, it is quietly funny, and it keeps on growing. I know 29 in a local pool of 40,000+ employees won't be easy to spot, but one day it may be harder to find the people NOT wearing the suit. 

As always, if you have a comment, complaint, or concern about something I wrote here, please let me know: james.rabe@townsquaremedia.com

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