And up the stairs he'd go. When Gerry Bannan puts Alex to bed now, they still play a little star game. Gerry Bannan will say. And on they go through pink, orange and green. Not all Roanoke children can see the star's glow.
Garden City snuggles up behind Mill Mountain on the south side, away from downtown.
There's long been a feeling in Garden City that it's the stepchild of city neighborhoods, forgotten because it's hidden behind the mountain. Lena Proctor was out in her yard with her little nieces and nephews the night in 1949 when the star was turned on. The big steel structure loomed high above Garden City. They waited excitedly to see the star's light. The neon was all on the downtown side.