Faces of Homecoming by Eric Oravsky
A troop of High school students takes a hike loaded down with gallons of white paint. It is a short trek, but it is all up hill. They reach their destination and begin painting. When they return covered in paint, the white “C” glistens from the hillside and the homecoming preparations have begun.
To most communities, homecoming is just a day for students to bring out the school spirit for the football team, make lots of noise, and party. However, to a small town in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana, it is a community thing. Parents get out and decorate cars in the parking lots, business owners drape banners from their windows and everyone gets involved. Corvallis Mont. only has around a population of 4,000 people; the community is much larger because of school district area.
“The school drives the communities in Montana, and sports drive the school,” said Jason Wirt, Sports Director and Assistant Principal Corvallis school district.
And drive it the school does. On Homecoming day people around town were blue, but far from down. Banners covered most of the walls inside the schools. The street had devil prongs painted on it and many students had painted faces, blue hair and CHS Blue Devils fake tattoos.
The Community provides large support for the school. “There is a tremendous amount of pride in this valley,” said Wirt. The recent field project, which built the football and soccer fields along with the track, seats and field houses cost about 1.6 million dollars, all came from money raised by the community. Several families even put their houses up for mortgage to cover the loans.
“It is pretty impressive for a community that doesn’t even really have a grocery store,” said Dan Sybrant Superintendent of the Corvallis school district.
Apart from money, the community comes out in numbers to attend the various events of homecoming. They start off with the parade complete with fire trucks and police cars, not escorting them, but leading the way. Although the parade hardly lasts longer than 15 minutes, the street is packed with supporters. Cheers fill the air as the wave of blue and white moves past.
“It is just a great time to become more of the community,” said Amanda Zeiler. The Zeiler family just moved from Florence for the beginning of the school year.
Then they all move over to the bar-b-que to chat and eat. Younger kids toss a ball around, while the older ones prepare for the game. Finally they all move into the seats in time for the coin toss.
Whether the team wins or loses, the stands are full of cheering fans, parents, and students. The day before they were at the volleyball game, and in the days following, they supported their soccer and cross-country teams in the same way.