Town planning celebration for Thompson

Lawrenceburg, tenn. - There are signs all over town square that indicate Lawrenceburg is preparing to welcome home a hero.

Instead, Saturday they could be welcoming home the next president of the United States.

Town officials are preparing for a huge celebration for Fred Thompson, the most recent addition to the list of presidential hopefuls. He announced earlier this month that he will seek the Republican Party nomination for president.

And that's great news for most people who live in this southern Tennessee town, which is about 20 miles north of the Alabama-Tennessee state line. Thompson, who was born in Sheffield, Ala., and attended what is known now as the University of North Alabama in Florence, Ala., grew up in Lawrenceburg.

"The excitement is building as we get closer to Saturday," said Ann Morrow, one of the organizers of the event. "I'd say 98 percent of the people are so excited that he is running for president. He even has a lot of longtime Democrats from our area pulling for him, but there are probably 2 percent of the people who are Yellow Dog Democrats and just don't realize the value of having someone from our hometown running for president.

"How often can you say that a person from your hometown is running for president?"

The last Tennessean who ran for president, Al Gore in 2000, did not fare well. Not carrying his home state of Tennessee, in fact, cost Gore the election. George W. Bush, instead, was elected president.

Town square in Lawrenceburg is transforming into a haven for "Welcome Home Fred." Businesses are putting banners in place and changing their marquees to recognize Thompson.

Organizers expect at least 5,000 people to attend Saturday's bash.

"Some say we might have 20,000 people here," said Lawrenceburg Mayor Keith Durham. "This could be a once-in-a-lifetime event for our town.

"It's very rare to have a mainstream candidate for president from your town."

Thompson is a former U.S. senator and has appeared in several movies and television shows, most notably in recent years the prime-time crime drama, "Law and Order."

Durham said dozens of local residents have pitched in to help plan and prepare for the celebration.

"Everyone is upbeat," Durham said. "We've lost a lot of industries and we rank near the top in the state in unemployment.

"His announcement that he's running for president has raised our spirits a lot. We need to be proud of who we are and of the people who are from here."

Part of the planning has involved making arrangements to handle the national media that is expected to follow Thompson to Lawrenceburg.

CNN, Fox News and all the network affiliates are expected to be represented at the event, Durham said.

Organizers say a shuttle service will run every 10 minutes from Rotary Park to the town square, beginning at 4 p.m. Motorists will not be allowed to park on the square after 2 p.m.

John Rich, of the famed country music band Big and Rich, will be the entertainment headliner at the event and is scheduled to appear at 7 p.m.

Thompson will address the crowd a short time later, organizers said Thursday.

Several members of Thompson's family, including his wife and mother, are expected to attend.

There is no charge for the event.

Tom Smith can be reached at 740-5757 or tom.smith@timesdaily.com.