It wasn’t just one incident, from the cab driver to hotel check-in desk, the fans in line at pre-game concessions, to the endless sea of tailgaters, they wore their host obligations on their jerseys
Robert Granader
| Special to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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A visit to Green Bay for a football game reveals a welcoming and friendly atmosphere, even for opposing fans.Packers fans are described as hospitable, showing more interest in visitors’ experiences than engaging in taunts.The area around Lambeau Field, known as Titletown, offers a family-friendly environment for pre-game activities.
If you’re feeling bad about America, head to Green Bay on a football game day and you’ll find everything that’s right about America.
Walking down a street in Any Town America you may not know your friend from your foe, but on your way to Lambeau Field in a bright red Washington Commanders jersey everyone knew where we stood in a sea of green and yellow.
When they approached us there was little fear of being taunted or spit on (thanks Philadelphia), they wanted to know if it was our first time in Green Bay and had we tried the cheese curds.
It wasn’t just one incident, from the cab driver to the hotel check-in desk, the fans in line at pre-game concessions, to the endless sea of tailgaters, they wore their host obligations on their jerseys.
In Titletown, pride in championships and care for others
Surrounding the stadium is a 45-acre plot of land called Titletown, a moniker the city earned by winning so many National Football League championships. It’s a huge playground where people drink beer, eat bratwurst, play games of catch, corn hole and giant Jenga.
One woman in line asked where my kids lived and I told her New York. She said her daughter would love to move there after college, she was getting “bored” with Wisconsin. “It looks so exciting there, but, you know that’s the trade-off. I don’t lock my doors here and it’s just a great place to raise a family.”
She wasn’t separating herself from the rest of the country, or criticizing another part, just recognizing the difference and embracing the “boredom” of home.
My 28 year-old son and I were there at a particular unsettling time. It was a day after Charlie Kirk was assassinated and it was Sept. 11. Walking through the park there were hundreds of small flags blowing in the wind. No fanfare, no huge sign, just quiet recognition of the fellow Americans who died twenty-four years ago.
As we trudged to the top of Ariens Hill, a large sloped grassy area that you climb to a reward of cold beer and a grand view of Titletown, there is a small sign that read: “NEVER FORGET-as you walk up the stairs of Ariens Hill, imagine doing it 30.5 times! That’s the equivalent of the 110 stories firefighters climbed on September 11, 2001.”
And they had me. They weren’t grandstanding, they were personalizing. They weren’t talking about something that happened out there, it was a small acknowledgement of what happened to us.
The pre-game party started hours before kick off, streets were blocked off, bands set up and there were people, from eight to eighty years old walking the streets, listening to the music, playing games, eating food and realizing how lucky they were.
Throughout the game people engaged us in conversation, not a lot of swearing or chanting or getting in someone’s face, it was “First time at Lambeau?” “Which bar are you going to after the game?” “Getting up early for fishing tomorrow.” “Cheese curds come in white or yellow,” and “Safe travels home.”
“It’s not even fun being their opponent,” my son remarked, “they’re so friendly I think I want them to win.”
They already have.
Robert Granader is CEO of the Freedonia Group, based in Washington, D.C.