New class of seniors attends Paloma Valley football game

Menifee senior citizens and their high school hosts cheer for the home team before the start of Friday night's game. Menifee 24/7 photos by Tommie Brown

By Tommie Brown, Staff Writer

Paloma Valley High School held its football home opener Friday night, along with the grand opening of brand new additions to the stadium. There to cheer on the opening day festivities was the new "Friday Night Lights" senior citizen fan base.

News hit early in the month that PVHS would be partnering with the City of Menifee to bring an intergenerational program to the community. It offersd rides, meals, and maroon gear for free to senior citizens interested in mingling with the younger crowds and watching the home football games this season.

Friday night saw the first event and it was surely a success to anyone who happened to stop by the designated seating area for the Friday Night Lights bunch.

The group gathered both friends and strangers together, as well as Paloma’s designated Link Crew student volunteers as chaperones to the 55 and older group.

However, it ended up being the senior group that chaperoned the teens. The senior gang jumped right into explaining the rules of the game to the otherwise confused students, explaining to them why coaches were pulling players off the field, what each yellow flag thrown by the referees meant, and most important that football scores are touchdowns, not goals.

Aside from football, members of the group also shared with the younger generation wisdom and flashbacks that Paloma students marveled at. These included reminding the students that film cameras aren’t a new Instagram trend but the way photography was founded, and sharing laughs about prom dates and high school back in the day.

But above all else, the senior group served as arguably the loudest cheering fan base in the packed stadium. When the score was 35-0 in favor of the visitors, the Friday Night Lights crew kept spirits high and began a “Score for the Seniors” chant. Understanding the sport more than most in the crowd, they rose to their feet, screaming on the sidelines along with the coaches and teammates -- even the ones who had never remotely had any affiliation with the school.

One couple, the Izaguirre’s, had never heard of Paloma Valley at all.

“We had no idea this school was here,” laughed Mrs. Izaguirre. “We moved to Menifee about five years ago and we have no teenagers around, so the high schools weren’t something we paid attention to. But we heard this event was going on and decided to come, and we sure are glad we did. It’s so nice to be out here as a community, doing what we all should be doing - cheering on the youth of this city.”

Another member, Mr. Morse, was of like mind.

“It’s not that I don’t go out to events and things in town. But there’s something nice about this, about coming together as the older generation and supporting the younger,” said Morse.

By the end of the night it was the senior group who kept spirits high and served as the team’s MVP cheer squad.

Friday Night Lights is a program that will continue on for three more Paloma home games and is open to anyone in the senior community who wishes to get involved. Pre-registration is required by the Wednesday before each game. Registration is free and can be completed online, by phone or in person at the Kay Ceniceros Senior Center, 29996 Evans Road in Menifee.

For more information, or if your organization is interested in getting involved, visit www.cityofmenifee.us/seniorservices or contact the Kay Ceniceros Community Center at 951-672-9673.