FOLLOW THE LIGHTS

Norristown High alumni invited back for first night homecoming game in years

NORRISTOWN >> Homecoming is a time for nostalgia, a time to go back to your old school, see old friends and reminisce about days gone by.

And, for some reason, the celebrating always seems to resonate more deeply at night.

If you miss the old nighttime homecomings at Norristown High, you’ll be glad to know they’re back in a big way.

The NAHS Alumni Association is inviting all Norristown High and AD Eisenhower alumni to come out on Oct. 18 for the Norristown Area High School vs. Boyertown High School football game at 7 p.m.

“Night games are just more exciting. Most of the teams we play, all but one in the Pac 10, have evening football. We haven’t had an evening homecoming since we left Roosevelt Field eight years ago,” noted the Alumni Association’s treasurer Cindy Serratore, Class of 1973. “It’s what many of us grew up with and sometimes what you grew up with is what you think is the best. Until this summer every football game that had been played at the high school had been in the daytime. This summer they installed lights so now they can

have Friday night football again. So we’re working with the high school to encourage alumni to come back. We’ve had banquet-style reunions in the past, but this is really a little different.”

Two hours before the game, at 5 p.m., alumni will gather for tours of the high school, and then convene outside the gymnasium in the atrium area at 6 p.m. for snacks and to meet current principal Ed Roth.

At 6:45 p.m. alumni will form a parade onto the football field, grouped by decades that are designated by banners.

“When people arrive they’ll be given a name tag, a shaker and maybe they’ll want to give us their contact information if they’d like to join the Alumni Association. Maybe some people would like a tour of the school because they’ve never been to the school, if they’re older and graduated from Eisenhower or maybe have never been past the auditorium,” Serratore added. “We’re giving them an opportunity to meet Ed Roth, the current principal, to make them feel connected to the school.”

There’s no better time than a homecoming game to try and recapture some good old-fashoned school spirit, Serratore said.

“We thought the ideal time to do this was to promote the first evening homecoming because it’s really what many of us grew up with. For anybody who grew up before these eight years, homecoming was always at night and it was always at Roosevelt Field. We got the idea from a couple of classes who would maybe tailgate on homecoming. Maybe if it was your reunion year and you’d get together with a few classmates just to extend your reunion weekend,” Serratore added. “We’re playing Boyertown, so there could be alumni from Boyertown. It doesn’t matter which side they sit on to root for. But you could be a graduate of Norristown and have a kid playing on the Boyertown team. We had that two years ago when we played Methacton and about half of our alumni were on the Methacton side. This is designed to be informal so we’re not putting a lot of rules out there.”

Norristown Area High School is located at 1900 Eagle Drive, West Norriton.

For more information or to let the committee you’ll be attending, call 484-690-3678.

SUBMITTED PHOTO Norristown’s first night football game will be played at home against Boyertown on Friday.

SUBMITTED PHOTO The installation of lighting at Norristown High football field now allows for nighttime football. The first night homecoming game since the team played at Roosevelt Field will be held on Friday.