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In memory of Jennifer
By DAVE SCHEIBER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 28, 2002
[AP photo]
“After all the years, and all the different times I’ve been down there, it’s really that personal tragedy that’s brought me the sweetest memory,” says Vince Gill.
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If he were looking for reasons, country star Vince Gill could come to the Florida Strawberry Festival simply to escape the winter chill of Nashville and squeeze in a few rounds of golf -- his favorite pastime when he's not making music and helping wife Amy Grant raise their new baby girl.
But what brings Gill back to Plant City for the fourth time March 10 is something far different. It is the memory of his performance there in 1993 and a 12-year-old Pasco County girl named Jennifer Odom.
She was abducted and murdered 12 days before Gill's Strawberry Festival stop. Before his evening show, Gill was told there was a man outside, hoping to get a few photos signed. The shots were of Gill and Jennifer from a concert in Odessa two months before; the man was her heartbroken stepfather.
Gill broke down crying when he saw the photos. He signed one for Jennifer's sister, Jessica, one for the sisters to share, and one for Jennifer, reading "May God be with you."
Jennifer Odom
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Then, during his show, Gill dedicated his No. 1 song at the time, I Still Believe in You, to Jennifer. He sang with tears rolling down his cheeks, and the audience helped him through it, singing along.
"When it boils down to it, once you turn out the lights, all the arenas look alike, and it's the really personal things and those kind of experiences that create a connection," Gill said this week, during a break from performing on and co-producing Grant's new album, Hymns. He will start producing his next solo album Monday.
"After all the years, and all the different times I've been down there, it's really that personal tragedy that's brought me the sweetest memory," he added.
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Harvesting the best of country
The Strawberry Festival's general manager has spent years cultivating ties to country music's top performers, and she's dished up a tasty 2002 lineup.
Strawberry Festival facts
The 67th annual Florida Strawberry Festival begins today and continues through March 10 at the Strawberry Festival Grounds in Plant City. |
"When her family brought me that photo taken of us, and told me what happened, it just really ripped my heart out. When the whole crowd sang with me that night, it really was one of the most moving and spiritual things I've ever seen.
"I was relating the story to Amy the other day and telling her how heart-wrenching and really beautiful it was at the same time. It was overwhelming to me just to be a part of it. Not that I was the reason for it. I truly believe it was the hand of God just reaching down on a community and trying to heal."
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