Why is This Muskego Teacher in a Duck Suit?

Last year, Muskego Elementary students raised about $1,600 for the American Heart Association during their annual Jump Rope for Heart event in their gym.

That's an impressive amount, but Scott Carlson, gym teacher at the school, thought they had more in them. In fact, when the event came around this year, he made the bold challenge that if the kids would raise double that this year, he would dress up as "Quacky the Duck" for a day.

He didn't count on the motivation of kids to have a chance to laugh at their teacher, perhaps. Or that another teacher whose young son would become their focus as they jumped into the record books.

Not only did students succeed in answering Carlson's challenge, raising more than $4,100 and breaking a school record, they honored one-year-old Aaron Phelps in the process. 

The son of teacher Katie Phelps, Aaron began life on a surgeon's table as he was born with a condition that placed the major arteries of his heart in the wrong positions. He has made remarkable progress, and to meet Aaron today, you couldn't guess that his beginning was so precarious.

Carlson opted to wear the costume, which is a mascot of sorts for Jump Rope for Heart, on Wednesday, from bill to tail.

He explained that he was happy to wear the full-body costume in spite of 80-degree temperatures.

"I'm just proud of our kids, they really did a great job. I'm not sure that they all felt more motivated because of Aaron, but when we raised our goal we weren't sure how it would go, but they came through and then some," Carlson said.