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Colonel Harris E. Rogner

Harris Rogner graduated from Brookfield High School in 1931. He played both football and basketball for the (Hill Toppers) Warriors and was captain of the basketball team in 1930-1931. Harris was a three year letter winner in football and was named to the All-County Football Team in 1931. At the time, Coach Koppel considered Harris one of the greatest athletes ever developed at Brookfield High School.

 Harris received his appointment to West Point from Congressman John Cooper of Youngstown, Ohio, and successfully passed his scholastic and physical examinations. In 1935 he enrolled as a freshman at the United States Military Academy (USMA). He played three years of varsity football with team members like “Monk” Myers, who was first runner-up in the first Heisman Trophy award. He earned three letters as a varsity basketball player and was captain of the 1938 team that was considered one of the strongest in the history of West Point. He was awarded The Sabre Award in 1938, which was given to the most outstanding athlete in the senior class.

Upon graduation from USMA at West Point, Harris chose to join the Air Corps and was assigned to Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas, as director of flight school training. By the end of 1941, he had obtained the rank of Captain, and by late 1942, Harris became Lieutenant Colonel. In 1943 he was assigned to the 94^thBombardment Wing with the Eighth Air Force and became Deputy Commander of the 401^stBombardment Group (H) B-17’s, which served during WWII in England and earned two Distinguished Unit Citations. The 401^stwas ranked the second best in bombing accuracy for the Eighth Air Force.

In 1944 Colonel Harris Rogner became Group Commander of the 457^thBomb Group (H) B-17’s at Glatton Air Force Base in England. The group carried out 236 combat missions over Occupied Europe and Germany. After WWII he was Commanding Officer of the 301^stBomb Group (M) B-29’s in England, which was the USAF unit of Strategic Air Command (SAC).

He was a member of the United Nations Military Staff Committee in New York. During the Korean War he was Vice Commander of FEAF. He was given a combat command and led several B-29 and B-36 missions deep into North Korea.

While on Christmas leave in December of 1951, Colonel Rogner was killed when a B-29 he was on crashed while attempting to land on a fog shrouded Barksdale Field, home of the Eighth Air Force, in Bossier City, Louisiana. Colonel Rogner was a highly decorated soldier. His medals and honors include: The Legion of Merit, The Distinguished Flying Cross (5 Oak Leaf Clusters), The Air Medal (3 Oak Leaf Clusters), The American Defense Service Medal (Service Star), WWII Victory Medal, European Campaign Medal, Korean Service Medal, Air Force Outstanding Unit Medal, and Croix de Guerre (with Palm).

Colonel Harris E. Rogner is buried with his wife Kathryn Sharp Rogner, at USMA in West Point, NY.

Anthony Tony Aiello

Tony graduated from Brookfield High School in 1940. He earned three letters in both football and basketball while playing for the Warriors. During the 1939 football season, Tony scored all but two of the touchdowns for the Warriors. As a senior quarterback, Tony was selected as the most outstanding player in the Inter-Valley Football League. Tony also played baseball in the summer leagues during his high school career and in his senior year boxed in the Golden Gloves Tournament.

He entered Youngstown College (YSU) in the fall of 1940 and played football for Dike Beede in 1940, ‘41 and ‘42. Known as “The Brookfield Bullet,” Tony was one of the leading rushers at Youngstown College. In his first game as a freshman Tony scored the only touchdown in Youngstown College’s win over Geneva College. The game was played before 7,500 fans at Rayen Stadium. In his three years as a starter for Youngstown College he helped the Penguins win 20 games while losing 4 and tying 2. In 1940 the team was (7-1-1), in 1941 (7-0-1) and in 1942 (6-3-0). Those three years were the greatest three consecutive years the football team had before the program was discontinued from 1943-45 due to World War II. Tony was inducted into the YSU Hall of Fame in 1995.

Tony entered the US Army in the fall of 1943 and was discharged in 1944. In 1944, he tried out for the Pittsburgh Cardinals and was traded to the Detroit Lions of the NFL.

Tony returned to Youngstown College in 1945 and completed his degree in physical education. He began his teaching career in 1946 at Norwalk High School. His taught and coached at Steuben, Ohio; Western Reserve High School in Wakeman, Ohio, and at Brookfield High School. Tony returned to Vermilion Junior High School in 1962 and retired from there in 1982.

Not only was Tony a gifted athlete, teacher and coach, but also he was a well-respected official. He was a basketball referee for 51 years, a football official for 31 years and a baseball/softball umpire for 29 years.

Tony married Marie Zaken from Farrell, PA, on August 12, 1947. He has three children, Toni Brutsche, Kathleen Henley, and John Aiello, six grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. Tony passed away on February 24, 2012.

Robert “Butch” Brest

Butch Brest was a 1961 graduate of Brookfield High School. He was considered to be one of the best all-around athletes ever to have played at Brookfield. Butch earned three letters in football, basketball, and baseball. As a senior, he was the captain of the football team and led the Warriors to a 7-3 record. He made first team All-County in football and basketball in his senior year. Butch was also named to the All-Ohio football team in 1960. He was The Warrior Touchdown Club’s most valuable athlete of the year in 1960-1961.

Butch earned a football scholarship to Arizona State University where he played quarterback in his freshman and sophomore years under legendary head coach Frank Kush. He received a degree in business management from North Central College in Naperville, Illinois.

Butch is the Executive Vice-president of A. Stucki Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He married Joanne (Bartolin) Brest on February 16, 1963 and they recently celebrated their 50^thwedding anniversary. Butch and Joanne have three children (Kimberly, Jeffrey, and David) and five grandchildren (Alexandra, Gabriella, Josephina, Clayton, and Lucas). Butch enjoys watching his grandchildren participate in their various sports.

Ron Kurtz

Ron Kurtz graduated from Brookfield High School in 1961. He earned two letters in basketball and three letters in golf. As a senior basketball player, Ron led the Warriors in scoring and was named to the second team All Steel Valley Conference basketball team. Ron was the number one man on the 1961 Warrior golf team. He shot a two under par 69 in the district golf tournament at Hubbard Golf Course which was the lowest individual score of the tournament. The golf team finished second at the 1961 district tournament and became the first golf team from Brookfield High School to qualify for the OHSAA State Golf Tournament in Columbus. Ron was the first athlete chosen by the Youngstown District Amateur Golf Association to receive a $500.00 college scholarship.

He attended Kent State University and was the co-captain of the freshmen basketball team. Ron chose not to play varsity basketball so he could concentrate on golf and his academic classes. He lettered all three years for the Kent State Golf team and was the number one man for most of his three seasons. Ron finished in the top ten in the Inter-Collegiate Golf Championships at Ohio State and won the Northeast Ohio Knights of Columbus Golf Tournament while a member of the KSU golf team. His score of 65 was a course record at the Kent State Golf Course for a short period of time. 

Ron received his degree as a registered nurse and worked for twenty five years caring for veterans in the psychiatric units in VA hospitals in Brecksville, Ohio; Menlo Park, CA; and Louisville, Ky. He also has a BS degree in education and has done some substitute teaching.

Ron has been married to his wife Janis for 47 years. He has a daughter Lisa and a son Brad. Brad won the Northern California State High School Golf Championship in 1989 and played at the University of Kentucky for four years. Ron and Janis have two granddaughters, Sydney and Addison.

Kristy Sirianni Gill

Kristy graduated from Brookfield High School in 1992. As a member of the boy’s golf team she played from the men’s tees and was the number one or two player on the boy’s golf team for all four years of her career at Brookfield. As a sophomore, Kristy finished second in the OHSAA girl’s regional golf tournament and qualified for the Ohio State Girl’s State Golf Tournament where she finished 10^thin the state. As a junior, she averaged 42.4 strokes per round and was the number one player on the boy’s golf team. Kristy again finished second in the OHSAA girl’s regional golf tournament by shooting an 82. She finished 8^that the OHSAA State Golf Tournament and was named second team All-State.

In her senior year Kristy won the Kennedy Girl’s Cup Golf Tournament at Yankee Run Golf Course. For the third consecutive year she participated in the OHSAA Girl’s State Golf Tournament and finished third overall. She was named to the First Team All-State Girl’s Golf Team. In the summer of 1992 Kristy won the Punch McDowell Golf Tournament at Sharon Country Club and finished first in the Northern Ohio PGA Junior Golf Tournament. She was selected by the Trumbull County Commissioners to participate in the Youngstown Warren LPGA Golf Classic.

Kristy received a full scholarship to play golf at Lynn University in Florida. She was the number one player on the Lynn University golf team. She was a member of a Division II National Championship team and was First Team All-American in her sophomore, junior, and senior seasons.

Upon graduation Kristy become the assistant golf professional at a private country club in Florida where she gave golf lessons, ran the junior golf program and was in charge of conducting ladies golf tournaments. Kristy is married to Chris Gill. They have two children who both show an interest in golf.

The 1978 Class AA State Champion Football Team

The 1978 football team is the only team in the history of Brookfield High School to win a state championship. The Warriors dominated most of their opponents during the 1978 season. In seven of their eleven games they did not allow their opponents to score. Only four touchdowns were scored against the Warriors for the entire season. Brookfield outscored their opponents 337 to 36. Poland (24-0), Elyria Catholic (33-14), St. Mary’s (19-14, and Hamilton Badin (28-0) all finished the season with only one loss. That one loss was to Brookfield.

Brookfield opened up their 1978 season with a 40-0 win over Rayen and it ended with the Warriors defeating Hamilton Badin 28-0 in the state title game at Dayton Welcome Stadium. Brookfield’s entire record is below:

Brookfield      40       Rayen                         0

Brookfield      34       Hickory                       0

Brookfield      42       Girard                         3

Brookfield      21       Warren JFK                 0

Brookfield      35       Mingo Junction          0

Brookfield      24       Poland                        0

Brookfield      35       Sharon Kennedy         0

Brookfield      33       Elyria Catholic            14

Brookfield      26       Sharpsville                  5

Brookfield      19       St. Mary’s                   14

Brookfield      28       Hamilton Badin          0

Brookfield’s roster included 14 seniors (Brian Bremick, Ken Brest, Mark Dubrasky, Pete Durman, Rich Furillo, Emce Jones, Jay Leipheimer, John Lott, Jeff Manion, Marcus Marek, Scott Poltor, Mike Sirochman, Mark Sydlowski, and Darwin Ulmer) who had an overall record of 32 wins and only 5 losses in their four years as football players for the Warriors.

The 1978 Brookfield football team was so talented that at the end of the century both The Sharon Herald and

The Warren Tribune had them ranked as one of the best teams in Trumbull County/Shenango Valley area for the entire 20^thcentury. 

1978 Brookfield Warrior Football Team

Head Coach – John Delserone

Assistant Coaches – Russ Hake, Tim Filipovich, Joe DeOnofrio, Walt Nogay, Dan Deramo, John Yensick, Jim Marek

Cheerleaders – Joann Diroll, Patti Wilson, Polly Murcko, Gloria Pitonyak, Peggy Sabulski, Tina Volarich

Trainer – Tom Reigelman – Manager – Bill Ferkin

Superindentent – S.P. Wright – Principal – Jim Levero - Athletic Director – Jerry Sandy