Grand Blanc — Don Batchelor Field is most often the site of spirited revelry during football games and other events.

But on Tuesday evening, with the stands packed with several hundred spectators and dozens of dignitaries seated in white chairs arranged on the field turf, the mood at the Grand Blanc High School football field was somber.

With a nearly full moon hanging in the sky and upbeat music piped in, the stadium, known locally as "the Don," took on an unusual feel.

"I knew that I would be back here for Homecoming and football games but I never thought I would be here for such a tragic event," said Peyton Whitney, who graduated from Grand Blanc High School in May.

On the morning of Sept. 28, Thomas "Jake" Sanford of Burton allegedly set fire to the Latter-day Saints church buildi

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