Pittsburgh Mayor Proclaims 'Jackie Evancho Day'

As the date for Jackie’s sold-out performance with the Pittsburgh Opera at the Benedum Center approached, a dedicated fan from Columbia, S.C., asked the office of Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl to proclaim the day Jackie Evancho Day.

Alex Moss – known as “Sempi Ternam” to Jackie fans — got the idea only a couple of weeks before Sunday’s concert and contacted the Pittsburgh Opera to see what they thought.

“They told me that due to the late date, it would probably be impossible,” he explained. “And I thought they were right, but then I thought, ‘Nothing ventured, nothing gained,’ and contacted the mayor’s office.”

After writing an “inspired request” and sending it through the mayor’s website, Moss admitted he was surprised when he heard a couple of days later that the mayor had granted the request.

Moss picked up the proclamation Friday afternoon when he came to town and presented it to Jackie at Sunday’s “Meet and Greet” held in advance of the concert.

The “Meet and Greet” session cost an additional $100 and tickets were very limited, according to Moss.

Like many Jackie fans, Moss discovered Jackie when he saw her first appearance on .

“I was just blown away like everyone else,” he said.

Moss, a single, semi-retired public health manager, said he has the time and funds to travel to various cities to see Jackie perform. He has another Jackie concert slated to attend in a few weeks.

Moss had a ticket in the center of the front row for the Sunday night concert, a ticket obtained after he became a season ticket subscriber to the opera.

“As soon as I heard the concert announced, I called the opera the next day and became a season ticket holder so I could buy tickets as soon as they were released,” he said.

He donated the rest of the season tickets back to the opera.