High school lights brighten sad times

RIVERIDE -- There is an old song lyric often related to sports and games when the outcome has been decided.

'Turn out the lights,” it goes, 'the party is over.”

While spring sports are over thanks to the COVID-19 virus, the lights were, instead, turned on.

Many high schools across the state turned on the lights on the athletic fields Friday. It was not necessarily to honor or celebrate athletics, but to celebrate the students and those who graduate in 2020 in particular.

'So we were doing it to honor our senior class,” Highland track and field coach Allison Stroebel said. 'We had approval from our superintendent Mr. Crawford.I think the school district administrators decided to light up the field. I think it was something that the Athletic Associations suggested and that many schools did.”

It was a nod to the shared feelings caused by the pandemic. The plan was to switch on the lights for one minute for every day school has been cancelled by the virus.

Iowa City Liberty Activities Director Mike Morrison said the idea for the tribute came after seeing some out-of-state schools had done it.

'It obviously has had an impact on extra curricular activities as simple as missing out on that camaraderie of being a part of a team,” Highland football coach and co-athletic director Joe Donovan said. 'We all feel for the seniors that missed out on their spring sports and those lost opportunities. I think we need to stay positive and focus on the future and the great things to come.

Obviously, this situation has resulted in the cancellation of the spring sports season so it hasn't done anything positive as far as sports go.

The lights were an attempt to provide some positivity.

'If had to mention any bright spots in all of this, it would have to be that families may be getting to spend more time with each other than they normally do,” Stroebel said. ‘The seniors are disappointed, of course, but they've handled things with maturity.”

It is an unprecendented time in most everyone's lives, a time that has deprived many of things that were assumed they would always be a part of.

'I think they understand that this situation is historic and serious and that no one wanted things to be this way,” Stroebel said. 'Sports are not the only thing they've had to deal with losing out on. Prom, graduation, and just finishing out the last months of school with your friends are losses they're dealing with, too.

'I think, like everyone, they're doing the best they can to get through this situation so they can move on to brighter days.”