Spring Break
Packers come to Pickle
Football players make stops on Water Street after 'Tailgate Tour' for charity
Jacob McCormick
Issue date: 5/7/07 Section: Campus News
By Jake McCormick
mccormjw@uwec.edu
Eau Claire was cast in a blend of green and gold Wednesday when members of the Green Bay Packers came to town as part of the team's "Tailgate Tour" through four cities across Wisconsin.
During the day, Green Bay Packers Aaron Rodgers, Nick Barnett and Mark Tauscher signed autographs and raised money for charity. That night, they got an unofficial taste of Eau Claire night life with stops at The Pickle and other bars along Water Street.
Betty Reinke, program director for the L.E. Phillips Career Development Center, said the charity event went off without a hitch.
"The tailgate party is intended for the Green Bay Packer organization to make their way around the state on tour and thank fans for their support," Reinke said. "The second reason for the event was to be a fundraiser for a local nonprofit organization."
She said all the money made from the event went to the devlopment center, which gives disabled and disadvantaged persons employment opportunities. After looking at other nonprofit organizations, Reinke said the Packers chose the Development Center for a variety of reasons.
"The Packers did some research on non-profit organizations in the area, gave us a call and visited us and saw that we had a lot of enthusiasm for our cause," she said. "We feel very fortunate that we were chosen and the players could not have been more cordial with young people and people with extreme disabilities."
Reinke said one encounter in particular spoke volumes about the players' character.
"One lady couldn't lift her hand and one of the Packers reached over and touched her hand," she said. "He was very understanding of her needs, and it showed the level of awareness and acceptance young people have towards people with different capabilities."
After the event, Reinke said the organization wasn't in charge of what the players chose to do.
Later into Wednesday night, Tom Bemis got a call from his boss at The Pickle telling him about the surprise visitors.
mccormjw@uwec.edu
Eau Claire was cast in a blend of green and gold Wednesday when members of the Green Bay Packers came to town as part of the team's "Tailgate Tour" through four cities across Wisconsin.
During the day, Green Bay Packers Aaron Rodgers, Nick Barnett and Mark Tauscher signed autographs and raised money for charity. That night, they got an unofficial taste of Eau Claire night life with stops at The Pickle and other bars along Water Street.
Betty Reinke, program director for the L.E. Phillips Career Development Center, said the charity event went off without a hitch.
"The tailgate party is intended for the Green Bay Packer organization to make their way around the state on tour and thank fans for their support," Reinke said. "The second reason for the event was to be a fundraiser for a local nonprofit organization."
She said all the money made from the event went to the devlopment center, which gives disabled and disadvantaged persons employment opportunities. After looking at other nonprofit organizations, Reinke said the Packers chose the Development Center for a variety of reasons.
"The Packers did some research on non-profit organizations in the area, gave us a call and visited us and saw that we had a lot of enthusiasm for our cause," she said. "We feel very fortunate that we were chosen and the players could not have been more cordial with young people and people with extreme disabilities."
Reinke said one encounter in particular spoke volumes about the players' character.
"One lady couldn't lift her hand and one of the Packers reached over and touched her hand," she said. "He was very understanding of her needs, and it showed the level of awareness and acceptance young people have towards people with different capabilities."
After the event, Reinke said the organization wasn't in charge of what the players chose to do.
Later into Wednesday night, Tom Bemis got a call from his boss at The Pickle telling him about the surprise visitors.
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