Having a field of their own

Every high school has a homecoming. But for Brethren Christian, this year’s event was even more resonant.

Last Friday, the private school held homecoming on its own field, for the first time in 20 years.

“It was huge,” longtime band director Len Montgomery said. “I started working here in 1989, and that was the last school year we had homecoming on our own field. Now, after going through two moves and not knowing where we were going to be having homecoming this entire time, we finally have a field. It’s been fun to see.”

More than a generation of Brethren students have celebrated homecoming at someone else’s facility. Friday’s event was celebrated not just by the current students, but by the school faculty and staff, parents and many alumni.

Brethren opened in Seal Beach in 1947, and moved to southeast Huntington Beach 10 years ago, school Director of Advancement Janine Ransom said.

The school occupies a 15-acre site leased to Brethren by the Huntington Beach City School District.

The site formerly housed Gisler Middle School, until the district closed it in 1986.

Brethren has a 35-year lease from the district, Montgomery said.

The school’s more than 450 students represent more than 150 different churches.

It currently serves students in grades seven through 12, and plans to add a sixth grade next fall, Ransom said.

Brethren is known for its many CIF championships, as well as its award-winning visual and performing arts programs.

“There are great families, and great kids to work with,” Montgomery said. “I like the Christian foundation and that emphasis on everything we do. We’re always growing and learning.”

The homecoming theme, “A New Frontier — a Warrior’s Destiny,” was evoked in an Old West theme that included a General Store for school merchandise, vintage-style game booths and a barbecue pit that served “mouth-waterin’ vittles.”

The award-winning Brethren Christian Warriors Marching Band started the night with a pre-show. During the game against the Sage Hill Lightning, homecoming queen Tivoli Hudson was presented at halftime, and the band performed again.

But the evening didn’t end with the final game buzzer; after cheering for the Green and White — which won by a landslide — the crowd enjoyed an after-party with live student-performed jazz music until nearly midnight.

“It was cool to just walk from the field to the after-party without getting in a car,” Montgomery said. “It was a blast.”

For more information on the school, call (714) 962-6617 or visit bchs.net.