Under Friday night lights, a normally green Brinkmann Field was blanketed in blue and gold as Greenhill School opened its home for St. Mark's School of Texas' homecoming.
Sunday night, an EF-3 tornado ravaged St. Mark's campus, destroying several athletics facilities and canceling classes for the week.
"When we woke up Monday morning and realized what had happened, we knew they would need a place to play their game on Friday," Greenhill Athletic Director Jarrett Shine said.
Shine said Greenhill was already in talks to offer up their stadium for their opponent's homecoming festivities when St. Mark's called and asked if it was possible to relocate.
"If you really believe in community, you don't feel the difference, right? We're still going to compete when we're out there on the field, but at the same time we still have to have love for one another," Shine said.
Though Lisa Greenberg's son plays on St. Mark's junior varsity team, she was in the stands for Friday night's game long before the team took the field.
"It’s been a scary week. We were lucky. We weren't impacted by the storm as far as our home, but we haven't been to school for a week," Greenberg said.
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For many, Friday night's game became the reunion between fellow students and friends, along with neighbors who've watched their kids deal with tragedy.
"The football team tends to be the lifeblood of the school during football season here in Texas, right? So for them to be able to come together and play, it gives them the hope that life's going to be okay," Hal Hurshel said.
Hurshel's son, a senior on the team, thought the season might be over when he saw the destruction Monday morning. He said the team was thrilled to learn that they'd not only continue to play, but that homecoming would continue as scheduled.
But it wouldn't have happened, Hurshel said, without the teamwork of opposing teams.
"It's just the fact our community comes together with all these different challenges," said Hurshel.
St. Mark's beat Greenhill School 25-0 Friday night.
