After Ike, High Island HS Finds Its Way Home Again
By Charles Breithaupt | Friday, November 07, 2008 6:58 AM
Thomas Hardy once wrote, “You can never go home again.” He was right of course, but he never knew the people in High Island.
High Island is a small southeast Texas coastal town along the Gulf Coast. Ravaged by hurricane they had little hope they would ever be able to return, yet miraculously many did.
Head Football Coach and Athletic Director at High Island High School Paul Colton had evacuated from his own home as Hurricane Ike barreled toward the Texas coast. Having already cancelled one game because of the evacuations, Coach Colton was concerned that the damages to the tiny Conference A school, nestled on the gulf coast, could cost his team the season.
He, like many others in High Island, awaited news regarding the rest of the season. Most importantly he awaited information regarding the fate of the school and the homes of many players who lived in the coastal communities along Bolivar Peninsula.
Hurricane Ike rushed to shore on Sept. 13, totally destroying some communities. It left behind debris-strewn streets and leveled homes. The storm surge carried nearly 15 miles inland. The surge carried away cars, trees and even entire houses. Along with the surge went the hopes of many.
The news was worse than Coach Colton could imagine. Whole communities were totally destroyed. Most lost everything they had except what they carried out during the evacuation.
Many authorities believed that it would be impossible to rebuild, and most agreed that school would not reopen in High Island ISD. Initially school board members, several of whom lost their own homes, saw little hope in overcoming the great odds of returning.
In fact, the board contacted the school superintendent and told her to tell all employees that they should find other employment if possible.
The board graciously agreed that the staff would be paid for October, but without students, the staff could not be retained. The school superintendent had been on the job only for two weeks and her entire school district was gone.
Coach Colton was unsure what he would find upon his return to the school. What he discovered was even more devastating than the pictures and TV cameras could capture. As he huddled with school administrators and local, state and national authorities, the news was bleak. Little was left of the homes and it did not appear that the peninsula would ever be reopened for habitation.
It took just one phone call to begin the start home. A single football player called from his cell phone to his coach with a simple question, “Coach, are we going to play our game next week?” What followed was nothing short of a miracle. That phone call saved a season, perhaps a school, and maybe even a community.
Player after player began to call one another and then the coach. Even though they were scattered across the state, they wanted to come back. They encouraged him to resume practice, promising they would find a way to return and salvage their season. Obviously these kids had no way of knowing if they still had a school. Most did not even know if they had a home.
If there was ever a time to validate the positive attributes of extracurricular participation it would be what happened next. Coach Colton scheduled a practice. Fourteen players showed up. Each day more arrived.
Players began to phone one another to encourage other students to return. The encouragement and leadership of the team and the coaching staff gave hope of a new beginning.
Parents began the journey home to what was left. Most had to commute from surrounding communities to bring their students back. When school reopened 121 out of 232 students in grades K-12 were in attendance. Most remarkably, of the 121 students 85 percent of them did not have homes.
The team led the charge, with 27 of 31 players returning. All of the cheerleaders made it back. Amazingly, the entire faculty returned.
They lived with relatives and friends. They packed into travel trailers; they stayed several to a room. Some stayed in tents. In fact Coach Colton housed six teenagers himself in his small home next to the school. But, they came back. And the season resumed.
On Oct. 10, nearly one month after the destruction of Hurricane Ike, High Island High School played a game. On a beautiful Friday night the Cardinals traveled to Burkeville to play their opening district game and their first game in nearly a month.
Final score - High Island 41, Burkeville 6. The Cardinals won the game, but most importantly they were victorious in the game of life. They pulled together and rallied each other’s spirits. They resurrected hope and they kept the faith. All for the love of a game. And each other.