The Green Bay Packers and Arise Health Plan paid special tribute to Lt. Col. Brian Vogt and his family during Sunday's Packers-Rams game for 'Operation Fan Mail.'
Vogt, from Manitowoc, Wis., has served in the U.S. Army for more than 19 years. After graduating from UW-Oshkosh on an ROTC scholarship, he was commissioned as an armor officer in 1996. Vogt then was stationed throughout the U.S., before deploying to Korea from 2000-01.
In 2003, Vogt served in Baghdad as a tank company commander, leading 76 soldiers and 14 M1A1 tanks. He again was deployed to Iraq in a leadership position in 2005 as a brigade headquarters company commander, and has been awarded with the Bronze Star and Combat Action Badge.
During his time overseas, Vogt continued to support the Packers, watching the games when he could and passing his love of the team on to his fellow soldiers, and those he met while deployed.
Vogt and his wife, Kimberly, have been married for 19 years and attended the game together, along with their daughters, Allison and Emily. The family currently lives in Yorktown, Va., where Vogt works as a modeling and simulation officer at the Army Capabilities Integration Center at Fort Eustis.
Operation Fan Mail, which debuted in 2007, is designed to recognize families with a member who is on active duty. The Packers and Arise Health Plan will host a family at each 2015 home game and recognize them on the field during pregame activities. A total of 80 individuals or families have been recognized through the program thus far.
To choose families, the Packers and Arise Health Plan are asking interested families, or friends of eligible families, to submit an essay, 500 words or less, on why a particular fan should be saluted. Essays can be sent to: Operation Fan Mail, P.O. Box 10628, Green Bay, WI, 54307-0628. Essays also can be submitted to the Packers online at packers.com/gameday/gamedaypromotions/operationfanmail.
In addition to being recognized on-field prior to the game, selected families receive four tickets to the game and a care package from Arise Health Plan. Families intended for recognition are those that have a member serving on active duty. The family member can be a spouse, mother, father, son, daughter or sibling.
