The Philly POPS to Present I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

The Philly POPS will kick off the holiday season with the eighth annual Comcast NBCUniversal I'll Be Home for Christmas: A Salute to the Military and First Responders, December 3, 2021 at 8 p.m. at the Kimmel Cultural Campus.

At this annual benefit concert, the POPS hosts 2,000 members of the military, veterans, police and fire departments, frontline healthcare workers and families for a special opening night of A Philly POPS Christmas. The concert is presented in partnership with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the City of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Police and Fire Departments.

The concert is a special patriotic presentation of Philadelphia's premier holiday show: A Philly POPS Christmas: Spectacular Sounds of the Season, which has seven shows throughout the month of December.

"Our Christmas Salute concert is a beloved tradition for those who serve, and we're so happy to welcome our servicemembers and families back to the hall," said Frank Giordano, President of The Philly POPS. "The Salute Series is an integral part of our mission, and it is an honor to be able to give back to our servicemembers with a night of Christmas joy and excitement. In light of the past year and half, we are proud to honor Dr. Ala Stanford, founder of the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, for her service and commitment to the City of Philadelphia and the Greater Philadelphia area."

The show starts with a patriotic program, including the Star-Spangled Banner. The Philadelphia Military Academy Color Guard will present the colors. Brigadier General (Retired) Carol Eggert, Senior Vice President of Military and Veteran Affairs for Comcast NBCUniversal will give remarks.

This year's Salute Service Award honoree is Dr. Ala Stanford, founder of the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium. Seeing the need for accessible COVID-related healthcare for Black Philadelphians, Dr. Stanford founded the consortium to provide mobile COVID-19 testing and vaccination operations. By bringing their operations to the community, the consortium was able to administer more than 25,000 vaccine doses by mid-March, with Black Philadelphians making up 75 percent of their clients. While administering COVID-related care, the BDCC also saw a need for general healthcare access for communities of color and have expanded to open a primary care clinic to help combat health inequity.

Following the presentation of Salute Service Award, the program continues with A Philly POPS Christmas. Music Director and Principal Conductor David Charles Abell returns for his sixth Christmas with the POPS, along with Broadway stars Scarlett Strallen and Hugh Panaro, guest pianist Charlie Albright, organist Peter Richard Conte, three choirs and Santa Claus, for a night of joy, wonder and memories with over 300 performers onstage.

The Philly POPS Salute Series recognizes those who dedicate themselves to a life of service by celebrating their commitment on holidays of American tradition. Since the inaugural Christmas Salute concert in 2014, the Salute Series has grown to include free community concerts on Memorial Day, July 3, July 4 and Veterans Day. Comcast NBCUniversal is the presenting sponsor of The Philly POPS Salute Series.

Tickets for this concert are not available to the public. All tickets have been distributed to military servicemembers, frontline healthcare workers, veterans and members of the Philadelphia Police and Fire Departments. The general public can purchase tickets to the seven A Philly POPS Christmas concerts that run December 4-18.

Schedule of events:

6:30 p.m.: Lobby entertainment featuring Santa and Mrs. Claus

7:15 p.m.: Uniformed concert attendees and families arrive

8:00 p.m.: Program begins, Verizon Hall

On-stage: Representatives from Philadelphia Police and Fire Departments, ranking members of each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Remarks by: Philly POPS President Frank Giordano and Brigadier General (Retired) Carol Eggert

Presentation of the Salute Service Award

The Philadelphia Military Academy, a POPS in Schools participant, presents the Nation's Colors

Star Spangled Banner

Musical program begins