John Temple sat in the stands at Independence All-School Stadium on a sun-drenched Saturday afternoon.
Sitting at his side was his granddaughter, Katie, the 2007 Van Horn High School homecoming queen.
On the field, his grandson Austin was calling the shots for the Falcons offense, as the lone senior and returning letter-winner on the Van Horn football team.
“I know Van Horn has gone through a lot the last few years,” said Temple, a 1960 Van Horn graduate and former Falcons football player, “but now that the school is part of the Independence School District, we all feel good about the direction it’s heading.”
There were countless Van Horn alumni at the homecoming game, wearing name tags and the year they graduated.
“There was a time when you would tell someone you’re from Van Horn and you get that look,” said Van Horn grad Jay Fisher, one of the hardest working and most enthusiastic members of the brand spanking new Falcons Booster Club. “And we’re doing everything we can to change that.”
Fisher was wearing a crimson baseball cap with the letters “VH” and a Falcon stitched across the front, and a sports shirt that you could wear to dinner.
“We didn’t have any type of Van Horn gear in the past,” Fisher said. “We’re making strides – big strides. We’re going to have the first play at Van Horn in years. I know that has nothing to do with sports, but it just shows how everything is changing – for the better – at the high school.”
When the Van Horn drama department puts on Neil Simon’s “Barefoot in the Park,” in December, Independence Superintendent Dr. Jim Hinson will be sitting in the front row.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” said Dr. Hinson, who attended the homecoming game. “The Independence School District looks at what Van Horn is doing with a great sense of pride. They have done some wonderful things, and are going to keep doing things to make the school something very special for all students.”
John Rosenthal’s 16-piece marching band performed at halftime.
“I wasn’t nearly as nervous this week, as I was last week” said Katie Stroud, a member of the band and a Van Horn volleyball player. “Last week was really special, and nerve-wracking, because it was the first time we played at halftime of a game, (in) like forever.”
No one is sure how long “forever” actually is, but it’s been a decade or more.
“We’re getting where we want to be,” said Rosenthal, who directed the band in the grandstand during the game. “I know all the students in the band believe they are part of something special.”
If you would have seen their performance, you would have felt like you were part of something special, too.
Independence, MO —
