Some traditions never die. For Broad Ripple High School alumni, that includes school pride and school spirit.

On Saturday, Sept. 17, BRHS alumni and supporters of the Rockets will continue a high school tradition with their ceremonious 2022 Homecoming Celebration and Parade. It's a mile-long procession through the streets of upper Broad Ripple Village that features floats, cheerleaders, majorettes, band members, a drumline and marchers of all ages.

It's a celebration of the iconic Northside high school that in 1980 won the last IHSAA State Basketball Championship for Indianapolis Public Schools, and produced such notable graduates as entertainer David Letterman, Indiana University Basketball Coach Mike Woodson, Super Bowl Champion and local businessman Rosevelt Colvin.

School spirit is often considered the binding heart of a school and school pride helps foster a sense of belonging among students, staff and alumni who were all part of its culture.

"You don't need a football team to have a Homecoming celebration," said Curtis Baker, a 1975 graduate and president of the BRHS Alumni Association.

In 2018, the IPS School Board closed Broad Ripple and two other high schools citing district-wide declining student enrollment. This school year, a charter high school occupies a portion of the building.

"Broad Ripple High School may no longer exist as we knew it, but its rich legacy lives on in each and every one of us," Baker said. "We want to continue to celebrate that and to keep our Mighty Rockets traditions alive. We are still here."

Emmy Award winning TV journalist Sherman Burdette (FOX59) is this year's parade Grand Marshall. Burdette is a 1975 BRHS graduate. The parade steps off at noon from the high school's Compton Street Gate up to Broad Ripple Avenue, then proceeds east on Broad Ripple Avenue to Primrose Avenue. The parade then turns south on Primrose to 61st Street, then west on 61st to Crestview Avenue. It will end back at the high school parking lot.

The celebration continues until 6 p.m. with a parking lot party featuring music, marketplace vendors and various food trucks. The Marion County Health Department also will be on hand to administer COVID-19 tests and vaccinations.