In the days after the terror attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, about 15,000 Tucsonans clogged roads and endured midday heat to form a human American flag at Tucson Electric Park — now called Kino Stadium.
Organizers spent two hours arranging most of them into a red, white and blue show of support for victims. Then David Sanders, an Arizona Daily Star photographer, snapped the flag from a police helicopter.
A KRQ-FM radio disc jockey and his listeners hatched the idea for the event as they talked on air shortly after the deadly attacks.
Tucsonans who were there that day are leaving remembrances and tagging themselves in the photo on our Facebook Page.
The Arizona Daily Star and KVOA, Channel 4 teamed up to produce a poster of the flag that was sold to raise money for a disaster relief fund. People later stood in long lines to get the poster and donated $160,000. The image also became a billboard at Oracle and River Road.
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Hank Rowe posted on our Facebook Page, "The poster is still on the wall in front of my desk. That was an uplifting day out of such a cloud of darkness. Way to go, Tucson!"
Many families shared the experience together. "My 4 girls and I were a red stripe. It was a great moment to share with them," writes Mindy Yager.
