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© St. Petersburg Times, TAMPA -- Bring Kleenex. You might need it when God Bless America is played. Or when Belinda Womack sings Amazing Grace. Or when New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani appears on the Jumbotron, via a tape, and gives his heartfelt thank you to the bay area for helping the victims of the biggest terrorist attack in history. This is the program planned for "An American Anthem," a concert to be held tonight at 7:30 at the Ice Palace on Channelside Drive. "It will be something that will leave you feeling great about our city," said Tampa Mayor Dick Greco at a news conference Monday at City Hall. "It will be moving." Organizers hope for a capacity crowd of 20,000. Gov. Jeb Bush and his wife, Columba, are scheduled to attend. And so, on Monday, preparations were in high gear. Greco was promoting the event on radio programs. Truckloads of plants were delivered to the Ice Palace. Banners -- red, white and blue, of course -- were hung. Around the Jumbotron, 90 flags were tacked. Those are the same flags that usually hang in classrooms of Hillsborough County schools. Outside the Ice Palace, volunteers such as Jarvis Sheeler helped drape a 60- by 40-foot American flag against the exterior wall, near the yellow lightning bolt sculpture. "When we put it up, people were honking," Sheeler said. "It makes you feel good." The Tampa Bay area is no stranger to using a concert to pull the community together during a time of turmoil. After the Persian Gulf War, the city hosted a massive concert that drew 20,000 people to Tampa Stadium. Tuesday's program is a tribute to God and country. Doors for "An American Anthem" open at 6 p.m. Admission and parking are free. Even private parking lots near the Ice Palace are waiving their usual fees, Greco said. Concertgoers are asked to wear red, white and blue and to bring a donation, which can be made by check or credit card. All the money collected will go to The September 11th Fund established by the United Way and the New York Community Trust for the victims and their families affected by the attacks.
None of the money will be used for administration, said George Baxter, president of the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, which will collect the donations. The Star-Spangled Banner, Armed Forces Salute and Fanfare for the Common Man will be performed by the Florida Orchestra. John Wilson, a WTVT-Ch. 13 news anchor, and his wife, Mary K., will sing America the Beautiful. The Tampa Bay Children's Chorus will recite the Pledge of Allegiance. There will be a prayer for firefighters, police officers and emergency workers in New York, and a prayer for peace and mankind. Nearly 4,000 Tampa Bay area religious organizations have been invited, including Muslims, Hindus, Christians and Jews. The show even has a 7 p.m. warm-up act: a massive chorus, composed of local choral groups. "Music does have that transcendent power to do whatever the listener needs it to do," said Thomas Wilkins, the orchestra's resident conductor. "That's why we do this."
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