[09/03/03]A group of parents was promised answers Tuesday after laying out problems they said they’re having as supporters of the Vicksburg High football program.

Milton Heard, president of the VHS Football Gators Booster Club and Parent Support Group, and about 20 parents attended the special meeting with the Vicksburg Warren School District’s board of trustees.

The Gators don’t have enough training equipment, the field house is too small and there have been setbacks in attempting to operate a concession stand, the group said.

A major problem has been confusion about permission to decorate the field at Memorial Stadium, especially after it was reported that Warren Central parents’ offers had been accepted.

After painting a Gator logo at midfield for the Meet the Gators Night on Aug. 21, parents were told to stop painting and get off the field, said club vice president Sammie Rainey.

“Are we dealing with two sets of rules here?” Rainey asked. “I thought we were one school district with one set of rules.”

Additionally, parents want to operate portable concessions in the stadium.

That franchise is held by band parents for varsity football games with proceeds benefiting the band. Football booster club parents have the concessions and receive the profits from eighth- and ninth-grade games and junior varsity games.

Rainey has two children at Vicksburg High School. His son is a football player, and his daughter is in the band.

“We are adamant about coming up with a solution that benefits everyone,” he said.

Solutions parents suggested were to either share in a percentage of concession profits from varsity games with the band or operate portable concessions.

Trustees provided no answers, but promised to contact the group as soon as possible, but before the Gators’ first home game Sept. 19.

Kay Aasand, president and District 5 trustee, said she wants the facts and figures regarding concessions before she could make a decision either way.

“This warrants further study, and once we look into it we’ll make a decision,” she said.

Meanwhile, the parents will wait.

“They said they’d get in touch with us by Sept. 19,” Rainey said. “If they don’t, we’ll be in touch with them. We’re a group of parents that is not going away.”