TAMPA, Fla. — Under the bright lights and roar of the crowd inside Benchmark International Arena, one voice is as much a part of game night as the puck drop itself.
On Wednesday, Sonya Bryson Kirksey, the voice of Bolts Nation, will mark a powerful milestone with her 500th anthem performance at the Tampa Bay Lightning's pivotal playoff home game versus the Montreal Canadiens.
Kirksey stopped by to talk about her accomplishment with Tampa Bay 28 anchor Deiah Riley.
Deiah: This is number 500. Did you ever think that you would get to 500?
Sonya: Never ever in my long-legged life.
Deiah: When you first started this, did you think that you would reach 500, or were you thinking long-term when you first started?
Sonya: Never ever. When I first started with the Lightning, I was just feeling so blessed to be able to do one game. So, after that, it kept going. You know, I just thought about, you know, having that feeling of being blessed to just do more and more and more. So, I really wasn't counting and I really wasn't thinking about a big number like that. But as time has gone by, and I've seen some of the players get to that threshold, I started to go back and look in my calendars because I keep these hand calendars to find out what that number was. And when it got closer, I was like really excited because that's one of those things that you never think you'll get to.
Deiah: When you come up when you're announced before you sing the national anthem, the crowd just goes wild. What does that do for you?
Sonya: It does a lot for me because it makes me feel like home. It makes me feel like family, like I belong there.
Deiah: These fans love you. They've seen you through all kinds of challenging times, good times, bad times. Number one, when you came back from COVID, we all worried about you and worried that you weren't gonna make it back, but you did.
Sonya: Yeah, that was scary. Not only did I not think that I was going to make it back as far as my voice was concerned, I didn't know if I was going to stay on the planet. That was a hard time being in ICU for almost 10 days, and I think the feeling that people cared about me, seeing my face on the news almost every night, also helped me to push myself to get back to that level.
Deiah: So, when you perform tonight, when you get ready to do that 500th, what will be going through your head?
Sonya: I'll be trying my best not to be emotional because, again, it's a blessing. I'm not an NHL player, so to be in a unit, to be in an organization, in a family for that long, speaks volumes. And it makes me feel like this is something that is at the end, I mean at the end of my journey, but something that's in my journey that, you know, is like a surprise, like one of those blessings that you didn't expect.
Deiah: What do you want your fans to know as you prepare for 500th number 500.
Sonya: I love you. I love you, and um, who knows, maybe it'll be 500 more.
Game 5 of the Tampa Lightning versus the Montreal Canadiens is scheduled to air at 7 p.m. on The Spot – Tampa Bay 66 (WXPX-TV).
Nearly all Lightning games will be broadcast live on The Spot – Tampa Bay 66 (WXPX-TV) and will also be streamed here.
The Spot Tampa Bay 66 is the official broadcast partner of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Spot and Tampa Bay 28 are both owned by EW Scripps.
Share Your Story with Deiah
Good Morning Tampa Bay Anchor Deiah Riley has called Tampa Bay for more than 15 years. As a mother of two, she knows the importance of a good education and strong role models. Reach out to Deiah with any education related stories or community leaders who deserve to be in the spotlight.
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