Brighton High School honored seven community members this fall through a new halftime tradition at home football games in Cottonwood Heights.
The Heart of a Bengal award, first reported by the Cottonwood Heights Journal, recognized a middle school student fighting cancer, a Gold Star mother, a business teacher, a longtime alumni volunteer and three military veterans who work at the school. Each honoree was presented on the field during a home game over the course of the Bengals' five-game home schedule, which ran from Sept. 4 through Oct. 14, according to MaxPreps.
Before each game, the cheerleading squad, student government and football team met with that week's honoree to hear their story. The groups then dedicated their game-night performances to the recipient.
The season's first honoree was Walt Davis, a local middle school student diagnosed this year with mature B-cell lymphoma. Davis attended the game with his parents, Spencer and Allison Davis, and received the award on the field. The Journal described him as a lacrosse player whose attitude through chemotherapy and hospital stays has inspired Brighton students and staff.
Jan Moncur, a 35-year Brighton employee who has served as a teacher, drill coach, student government adviser and testing coordinator, received the award for her service. Moncur is a Gold Star mother whose son, Philip Christensen, died during military service. Accounts differ on the circumstances: the Journal reported he was killed in Iraq in 2011, while a 2010 Deseret News article reported he was killed in an Army training accident at Fort Riley, Kansas, in April 2005.
Moncur organized a scarf-knitting effort for Iraqi women and children that grew to more than 80,000 scarves sent from across the country, according to the Journal. She told the Journal the recognition caught her off guard: "I was so surprised and humbled receiving this award."
Business teacher Kevin Elzey was honored for his mentorship. Elzey previously worked as director of marketing for BYU Athletics and director of sales for University of Utah Athletics before switching to teaching five years ago, according to the Journal. At Brighton, he leads the school's DECA chapter, which the Journal described as the largest in Utah, and has taken more than 60 students to national competitions.
The season's final award went to three Brighton employees who are military veterans: Derek Chandler, who served in the U.S. Army from 2001 to 2009 with deployments to Kosovo and Iraq; Janice Spencer-Wise, a retired master sergeant with 26 years in the U.S. Air Force Reserve; and Ron Meyer, a U.S. Navy veteran who teaches English and coaches golf at Brighton.
During the veterans' game, all veterans and service members in the crowd were invited to stand for recognition, the Journal reported.
Brighton finished its football season 1-9 overall and 0-5 in 5A Region 6, according to MaxPreps. The Bengals did not qualify for the state playoffs.
