Cincinnati celebrates life of Carl Lindner, Jr.

CINCINNATI - Members of the Norwood High School Marching Band were hard at work Thursday rehearsing the school fight song for a special friend -- Carl Lindner, Jr. -- who bought the uniforms the members wear.

"Norwood's band right now is getting to be very, very good," said Director Patrick Bauer. "If we didn't have those uniforms, we would not be able to go out and compete."

At the Otto Armleder Education Center, downtown, first-graders rehearsed "This Little Light of Mine," the song they'll sing in tribute to the man who founded their school as part of Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy. Sixth-grade members of the steel drum band, "Pandemonium," practiced their version of the tune as well.

"I want the family to know that we appreciated him a lot," said Jeresa Anderson. "It will feel good for them to know that."

"The school has given us the opportunity to study really good and to get closer to God," said Sandra Ramirez. "We get the opportunity to have a happy life."

Both sites are on a 90-minute parade route that Carl Lindner, Jr. will travel for the final time on Friday. The procession includes locations that were important in his life.

The parade began at Great American Ball Park at 9 a.m. and ends at 10:30 a.m. in Kenwood near Trio, the bistro Lindner and his wife often frequented.

Communities on the route include downtown, Over-the-Rhine, West End, Mt. Auburn, Evanston, Norwood, Silverton and Kenwood.

The Cincinnati Reds placed a banner and a floral wreath at the stadium's main entrance. Lindner is a former team owner when the ball club moved into the new facility from Cinergy Field.

"We certainly are appreciative of everything he meant to this city and to this franchise, keeping ownership local and building this brand new ball park in his tenure," said Reds Chief Operating Officer Phil Castellini.

Employees of the front office will line Joe Nuxhall Way at the start of the procession. The team plans to honor Lindner during Redsfest in December and on Opening Day 2012.

The city of Norwood is rolling out the red carpet for Lindner. Besides the marching band, police officers and firefighters will line Montgomery Road in front of City Hall.

"We're going to celebrate him," said Mayor Tom Williams. "That's what the family wants and that's what we'll do. It's the least we could do."

It was in Norwood that Lindner began his business career with United Dairy Farmers. It's a hometown he never forgot through the years, donating countless dollars for educational and community endeavors.

"He was a decent individual who believed -- and I think it was based on his faith -- that he had to do something to help people or give back," said Williams, who considered Lindner a close friend.

The mayor told a story Thursday of how a little girl once approached Lindner at the Norwood pool and sports complex.

"I want to thank you for the computers you sent to my school," Williams remembered her saying before she shook his hand. "If that doesn't bring a tear to your eye, nothing will."

Williams also recalled when Lindner telephoned him after hearing that Norwood couldn't afford new police radios.

"He says, 'You go ahead and get those radios and I'll take care of it. Norwood is near and dear to my heart, it makes me feel good to give back to the community that gave me so much,'" he said.

At Music Hall a Cincinnati Pops Orchestra Brass Quintet will perform along Elm Street for the Lindner family.

Lindner and his wife rarely missed a Pops concert. He and the late Pops Conductor, Erich Kunzel, were friends for years and his financial support helped propel the ensemble to worldwide fame.

"Our appearance at the Beijing Olympics, our domestic and international tours, our PBS broadcasts, the state-of-the-art sound system that we now have -- all of these wonderful things have been made possible by Mr. and Mrs. Lindner," said Trey Devey, President of the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestras.

Devey said he was amazed at the depth of knowledge Lindner possessed when it came to the orchestra's business affairs.

"He understood everything about the organization and cared deeply," Devey added. "Warm, caring, kind, welcoming -- all the adjectives that you could think of -- that was Mr. Lindner."

Funeral services will be private. The family has requested that no flowers be sent. Instead, memorials should be made to the Kenwood Baptist Church, where Lindner worshiped.

For a full schedule of the parade click here .