Looking through the dense sea of “Bring Back Brewer” signs waving through the air at the January 10 LCPS school board meeting, it’d be an understatement to call the meeting a packed house. Only those who arrived a half hour before the meeting began got seats in the meeting room, and anyone who arrived after 6:15 wasn’t allowed inside the building at all before the 6:30 start time. While issues including field hockey funding and a proposed wording change to the LCPS employee protection policy involving LGBT protection were on the board’s agenda, the vast majority of community speakers attended on behalf of Dr. John Brewer.

There are expectations of another packed house at the next LCPS school board meeting on 1/24. This could be a last chance effort to offer support before Brewer’s closed door hearing is scheduled by 1/27. NBC, CBS, and ABC were all present at the meeting on January 10 and aired reports that night but it remains to be seen if they will continue to cover the story.

Each speaker was given one minute to present their issue to the board. The hundreds of students, parents, alumni, teachers, and members of the community who came on Brewer’s behalf utilized their time to the fullest—many being cut off mid-sentence—and talked about topics ranging from Dr. Brewer’s generosity with his pants to surprise early-morning visits Brewer made to freshman homes with his Welcome Wagon.

Speakers came from places as far as Nebraska and California to speak on Brewer’s behalf. Joseph Williams, a Dominion alumnus, was flown out to Virginia by the staff of Dominion High School. Williams, who throughout his four years at Dominion was suspended nine times, credits Dr. Brewer with turning his life around. “[Brewer] went out on a limb and really put himself on the line to give me chances…second chance after second chance to get my act together,” Williams said. “Dr. Brewer put his neck out for me time and time again to really show me that he cared, and I ended up going to UVA because of his influence.”

These heartwarming stories were not the minority. Countless DHS alumni and parents came back to tell how Brewer saved their lives, with one parent sharing a personal story about how Brewer saved her daughter from running away with a sex-trafficker. Another discussed how, following her brother’s death in a car accident, Brewer gladly provided her family with food and moral support. Others shared anecdotes of how Brewer provided them with rides to work and school or bought them school supplies out of his own pocket. While these actions seem small, the impact that they left on students even after graduation speaks volumes.

An individual with absolutely no lack of leadership experience—former CEO, President, and Chairman of the Carlyle Group’s ITT Industries, Lou Giuliano—said that Brewer is one of the best leaders he has ever known, and advises up and coming leaders with stories of Brewer as a pinnacle of leadership.

Flying out all the way from a workshop in Nebraska were managing partners and key trainers for APL Associates Jean Anastasio and David Terry. At the podium, Terry stated that they use DHS and Brewer as not only a  model of leadership, but also a model of ethics and character around the country. “We place him in probably the elite 12-15 administrators in the country that we’ve worked with and we’ve worked with tens of thousands of teachers nationally and internationally.”

Terry’s main purpose for making the long journey to speak on Brewer’s behalf was to “make sure the board understands what they have here that’s unique—he’s not somebody who falls off trees—they come by rarely of his caliber.”

Proving Terry’s point were the speakers who noted how many accolades Dominion has earned over the year, including its Top 20 ranking in Virginia schools on Niche.com and its top 500 rank on U.S. News—both of which are the best among Loudoun County’s high schools—came as a result of Brewer’s hard work and dedication to students’ personal growth.

If the hundreds of people willing to sit in the school board meeting until past 11 o’clock PM on a school night is enough to prove it, then the masses have spoken—neighbors, colleagues, parents, biking partners, and past, present, and future Titans want Dr. Brewer back as DHS’s principal as soon as humanly possible.

Further showing the community’s immense support for Brewer are a number of online and social media support groups. A GoFundMe account was started by DHS parent, Mark Harrington, on January 3. Within nine days, the account has surpassed its $20,000 goal raising a total of $23,865 from over 200 people.

On Facebook, the Support Dr. Brewer page has 1,327 followers and almost as many likes. Amongst the posts on the page are requests for graphic designers to create a “Bring Back Brewer” yard sign, videos of people advocating their support for Brewer, and much more. There is also a Twitter page of the same name with over 200 followers.

The message of the masses seemed to be embodied by a statement from Corey Burns: Because of his willingness to never give up on a student, his character, and his integrity “[Brewer’s] actions shouldn’t be reprimanded—they should be replicated throughout the county.”