Geoffrey the Giraffe, the iconic mascot for the now-defunct Toys R Us chain, has been adopted and has a new home.
The statue that used to be featured at the toy company's headquarters in Wayne, New Jersey, was moved to his new location at Bristol-Meyers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, My Central Jersey reported.
Geoffrey was officially unveiled Wednesday.
Hospital officials said that Geoffrey’s original name was Dr. G. Raffe, so it was appropriate that his new home is at the hospital.
"Geoffrey used to be a doctor," John Gantner, RWJUH president and CEO told My Central Jersey. "I thought it fitting that and a little bit ironic that Dr. G. Raffe has moved to a hospital in this next stage of his career. And although Geoffrey moved from his former home tin Wayne, to his current home in New Brunswick, his job responsibilities have not changed all that much."
During the ceremony Wednesday, eight patients were dubbed zookeepers and removed the sheet from the 16-foot tall, 550-pound statue in front of the hospital officials and guests, My Central Jersey reported.
Ken Rosen, a board member for the health care network that runs the hospital, paid the $6,000 it cost to install the statue at the hospital. Joseph Malfitanio, whose company worked on the liquidation of the company's assets, also paid about $10,000 to pack and move the statue, Bloomberg reported last month.
Toys R Us was founded in 1948, but the company filed for bankruptcy in September with all stores closing by June 30.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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