William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog for the past nine years. Douglas joined NHL.com in March 2019 and writes about people of color in the game. Today, Sonya Bryson-Kirksey, who sings the national anthem at the Tampa Bay Lightning home games. She started a reading project for children, with videos shared online.
Sonya Bryson-Kirksey wanted to use her voice to do more than sing the national anthem at the Tampa Bay Lightning home games during the pandemic.
The 54-year-old retired Air Force technical sergeant recalled her childhood and had an idea she hopes to inspire and provide comfort for young children living in the COVID-19 era: Reading aloud.
Bryson-Kirksey and his sister, Phillis McMiller, created the Sonni Reading Project, in which Bryson-Kirksey reads books aloud to children.
Readings are available on the project’s YouTube channel and Facebook page, as well as podcasts on platforms such as Spotify, Google and Apple podcasts.
The books range from sports-related titles, like “The Magic Hockey Stick” and “Goodnight Hockey”, to contemporary stories like “Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History” and “Pandita and the Pandemic”, and all are read in one soothing and deliberate tone.
Bryson-Kirksey and his sister started the project in November. It reminded them of their childhood in South Carolina, when an aunt used to read to them when she visited on Sundays.
“When I was a little girl, she read to me,” said Bryson-Kirksey. “She used to pull me onto her lap to read when my mom was doing her hair. But the point was, you have some people who read to you and some people who act. She was an acting reader and she made a story come to life for us. “
Bryson-Kirksey said he wanted to have the same impact when he started reading online to his grandchildren. As the pandemic continued in late 2020, Bryson-Kirksey and his sister decided that, instead of just reading to the family, “Why can’t we do this for the world?”
“Children are going through a lot right now, we want to be a positive person for them,” she said.
Bryson-Kirksey hopes the project will inspire children to pick up books and read on their own.
“There has been a violent onslaught of social media and other electronic things,” she said. “I would love for children around the world to rediscover reading.”
As the reading project progresses, Bryson-Kirksey said he hopes to invite some Lightning players to be substitute readers.
“We are still in childhood,” she said. “It is something I have in a double boiler.”
Bryson-Kirksey has featured “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Lightning’s home games since 2013, but this season and 2019-20 has been like no other for her.
She sang the anthem live for Lightning’s home debut on January 13, so Lightning relied mainly on recorded versions later.
She has sung the hymn in person six or seven times since March 13, when Lightning started allowing a maximum of 3,800 fans at the Amalie Arena for the games.
Bryson-Kirksey, who has multiple sclerosis, said he was very careful when he was in the arena.
“It has been a safe environment,” she said. “I had no problem. As far as my health is concerned, I have to make sure I’m wearing my mask until I sing, so I immediately put it back on later.”
In addition to wearing a mask, the pandemic brought another notable change for Bryson-Kirksey: the presentation of the Canadian national anthem. She had only done this once in a home game because Lightning owner Jeff Vinik said he preferred that she only sing the United States anthem because of the energy it brings to music.
Bryson-Kirksey recorded versions of the anthems of the United States and Canada that were played before the “home” Lightning games in the bubble during the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs.
She sang “O ‘Canada” at the Amalie Arena once this season, for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association, who are playing at home in Tampa this season because of the closure of the border between the United States and Canada due to the pandemic.
“The Canadian anthem is so melodic, it’s beautiful,” she said. “I love that.”
Bryson-Kirksey loves that the Lightning won the Stanley Cup last season and is eagerly waiting to receive his champion ring. He had it placed on the middle finger of his right hand.
“It’s my hand on the microphone and the middle finger is the one that shows the most when I hold the microphone,” she said. “I can’t wait to use it when I sing.”