Veterans Take Center Stage At Fenton Football Game

The may have come up short on the field against Brandon Friday, but the Tigers couldn't help but take pride in the school's second annual night to raise funds and awareness for the , an organization that helps ease the financial burden on wounded military veterans.

"It's an awesome experience," said Fenton coach Jeff Setzke. "Very few high school kids get to experience anything like this."

The military theme was impossible to miss. Both Brandon and Fenton wore special jerseys with camouflage. Several uniformed military personnel and their families were in attendance. A huge American flag hung from a crane over the stadium and a Blackhawk helicopter even did a flyover and parked on the baseball field, giving those in attendance the chance to get a tour of the aircraft.

"It's a cool thing to participate in," said quarterback Houston Shaw. "Everyone coming together (for this) is great."

After the game, players from both Brandon and Fenton presented 80 sponsored jerseys to veterans or their families. The players wore the names of those veterans during the game.

"My uncle, that's whose jersey I wore," Shaw said. "It's some special we can do for them because they serve for us and keep us safe."

At halftime, a check for $30,000 was presented to the Wounded Warrior Project. Along with money raised by the Fenton community, Brandon also contributed $1,500. Holly, who played Fenton in last year's Wounded Warrior game, also contributed $500 this year.

"The pageantry of the night is just awesome, second to none," Setzke said.