If the goal of the Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Billy Graham Mission was to bring people together, well, it's happening.

        Sandra Graham (believe it or not she has a husband named William and a son named Billy), 58, of College Hill, has “made friends in the choir that I'll have all my life, and that's a blessing. It's almost like we've known each other for years.

        “I know that God is going to do something because of this. Too many people have come together for Him not to. The work we've done here is larger than the stadium, larger even than the city. I really believe God is in our midst.”

        Her one regret? “People keep telling us how good the choir sounds, but we can't hear it. I can hear my own section (tenor), but not the blended voices.

        “I almost didn't come tonight because of the heat, but you know what? I have an ice pack under my hat.”

        Another sign the togetherness goal has been met: College Hill Presbyterian Church and Ms. Graham's First Baptist Church of College Hill are involved in bringing all the churches in College Hill together for College Hill Day.

        They've already had the first meeting and “it will set an example for the entire city. In College Hill we are everything — Hispanic, Caucasian, Asian, Indian, Arabs and African-Americans,” said Ms. Graham, who is African-American.

        “And you know what else? It all started here. What we saw is that we can take our diversity and spread the word outward. It only takes one.”

        Details are evolving, but Ms. Graham and the organizing committee see College Hill Day as “very much like this with diversity, music, crafts, counseling, The Word and hopefully, people coming to Christ.

        “Except Mr. Graham won't be there. You know, I kept trying to think how one man could draw so many people, and then it came to me. One word: Humble. He gives God all the glory for his works and takes none for himself.”

        Anyone who thought the mission organizing committee over did things by recruiting more than 1,500 ushers should talk to a few of them.

        “Wow, we haven't stopped. It's the questions, they just keep coming and coming,” said usher Laurie Caufield of Fort Mitchell.

        Most frequently asked question? Where's the coolest place to sit.

        “I keep telling them the west side of the stadium because it's out of the sun,” said Dorothy Allen. “But it also fills up fastest, so you can get closer to the stage on the east side.”

        No. 2 on the hit parade should be obvious at a place where people are swilling bottled water as fast as they can pop the top.

        “That's the first thing I did when I came down here the first time,” another usher said. “I scouted for the closest bathroom.”

        That's good, said Mary DeLuca, visiting from Atlanta: “Of everyone I've talked to, and there have been a lot because I'm a talker, not one has been in this stadium before. Not ever.

        “There are escalators going up, but in four nights I haven't found one going down. There are sections of concourse that just plain dead end in a big old wall.

        “I had to go to two ushers to find my seats after I went looking to buy a shirt.”

        This has been a great four days for Adbullah Hassan, Daniel James and Dave Pogue, all of Covington. Collectively known as 3 Deep, they're the two drummers and alto saxophonist who have been playing on Elm Street off the eastern end of the stadium plaza since the mission began.

        “It's a good crowd to play for because they love music and can be real generous,” said Mr. Hassan after an especially lively “Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree.”

        How generous was up in the air because the group had yet to tally the four nights of donations.

        “This is how we make our living, so it's important to us to pick the right event,” Mr. Hassan said. “This one was. People before the meeting, they're in a hurry to get their seats, so they kind of hurry by. But after the meeting, they stop and listen, some dance, a lot throw money in our bucket or in the sax case.”

        Their work continues in coming weeks. In a few days they'll hop a Greyhound Bus and head for Taste of Chicago. From there they'll head to New Orleans for a summer jazz festival where they won't make as much money as they do at Mardi Gras, but “we'll do just fine,” Mr. James said.

        “We're doing what we love and we're making a living,” he added.

Billy Graham Mission headlines
Record crowd returns Graham's love
Real test begins: Putting words into action
Total attendance tops 200,000
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Excerpts from Graham's sermon
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Mission brought people together
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No alcohol, no problems for police
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