On Fountain Square and in places of worship across the Tristate, Cincinnatians will answer President Bush's call for a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance today.

        They will mourn the loss of the thousands who died or are presumed dead from Tuesday's terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

        In a proclamation Thursday, Mr. Bush said: “I call on every American family and the family of America to observe a national day of prayer and remembrance, honoring the memory of the thousands of victims of these brutal attacks and comforting those who lost loved ones.”

        Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken has asked leaders of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths — including Roman Catholic Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk and the Rev. Freddie T. Piphus Jr. of the Lincoln Heights Missionary Baptist Church — to officiate at the city's noontime ceremony.

        “It is appropriate that we come together at the center of our community — Fountain Square — to grieve, and to express sorrow, and to pray for the victims of this tragedy,” the mayor said.
       

Local fears
        At least seven people with family ties to Greater Cincinnati may have been victims of the terrorist attacks. Of those, two were passengers of American Airlines Flight 11 and are presumed dead: Kelly Booms, a Cincinnati native, and John Jenkins, an Erlanger native.

        The body of Doug Cherry, a Terrace Park native who worked on the 91st floor of the World Trade Center, was found Thursday.

        On Thursday, Bishop Robert Muench of the Catholic Diocese of Covington called upon parishioners to forgive those responsible for the attacks. He warned “there is a danger that in this calamity we exclusively focus on the evil outside ourselves.”

        Other observances today include a community-wide prayer service at noon at the Front Street Presbyterian Church in Hamilton.

        The World Peace Bell in Newport will ring every hour from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. for a week in memory of the victims. Two 1-foot by 9-foot banner postcards will be available to sign beginning 7:30 a.m. today at Fountain Square. They will be sent to the mayors of New York and Washington.
       

Oktoberfest postponed
        In light of the attacks, the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce decided to postpone Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati until next weekend.

        “It seems inappropriate for the city of Cincinnati to come together with party and song, as we do at this time every year,” Mr. Luken said.

        Organizers of the festival tried to keep the event on schedule. But with the National Football League canceling its schedule on Sunday, the fun and frivolity of the 26th annual event seemed out of place.

        “It's a tough time for our community to know when to move forward, and to know when to mourn appropriately,” said chamber vice president Patrick Sheeran.

        Next week's event “will be a different Oktoberfest than we've seen in the past,” he said.

        Tony Orlando, who had planned to lead the festival's signature event — the “World's Largest Chicken Dance” — will instead sing his signature 1973 song, Tie a Yellow Ribbon. The song later became an anthem of unity during the Iranian hostage crisis in 1979 and the Persian Gulf War of 1991.

        Oktoberfest draws about 500,000 people to five blocks of Fifth Street and Fountain and Government squares.
       

Air traffic resumes
        The aftermath of the attacks has continued to disrupt life in Cincinnati in other ways.

        Air traffic resumed slowly Thursday at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, but with much tighter security. Many of the 1,200 people stranded when air service shut down Tuesday morning were able to leave. Travel agents reported cancellations by customers worried about their safety.

        Miami University in Oxford has canceled classes for today, although other area colleges will proceed as scheduled.

        Across the Tristate, people responded to the crisis in ways big and small.

Help agencies busy
        The Cincinnati Red Cross Chapter has been swamped with calls offering food and water.

        “The best way for us to provide relief for families is through monetary contributions,” communications specialist Sandra Guile said.

        The Hoxworth Blood Center urged donors to make appointments and said they are nearly booked for the next two weeks.

        Muslim leaders, who on Tuesday reported an alarming number of phone threats, said they are now getting supportive phone calls and letters from people of other faiths.
       

Symphony plays on
        The debut concert of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra's new director, Paavo Jarvi, will proceed tonight at Music Hall. Mr. Jarvi will open the CSO's season with a moment of silence.

        Then, to commemorate the 187th anniversary of the national anthem, the symphony will play Francis Scott Key's “Star-Spangled Banner,” which describes the uncertain moment in the War of 1812 when our flag — and the freedom it represents — still waved in the battle-torn sky.

        High school football games in Ohio and Kentucky will go on as scheduled, except for the game between La Salle and a Canadian team, Toronto St. Andrews.

        All college football games were canceled for Saturday. Major League Baseball also scratched its weekend schedule. The Reds plan to resume play Tuesday at Cinergy Field.

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