The community outreach department includes (from left to right) Jessie Micke, Sandy Roubal, Julie Broeckel, Tim Schroeder, Bobbi Jo Eisenreich and Cathy Dworak.
The Green Bay Packers' community outreach department has come a long way in six years.
In fact, the name itself is fairly new. Formerly known as community relations, the community outreach department changed its name to better reflect its goals and what it does, which is to make a consistent, positive impact throughout Wisconsin and Upper Michigan communities via numerous outreach programs.
Cathy Dworak, the team's manager of community outreach, said the number of programs and initiatives has grown so much that since 2002, when the department included her and one part-time employee, the team has added another part-time and three full-time staff members.
That has allowed the annual number of player and coach appearances in the community to increase from 80 six years ago to around 530 last year. But it's not just the player and coach appearances the department organizes.
There are several donation and Make-A-Wish requests, community events, fitness programs, youth football and NFL league-wide programs targeted to youth, schools and non-profit, community-focused organizations, keeping the larger staff busy year-round.
Bobbi Jo Eisenreich, corporate donations supervisor, coordinates all the in-kind and monetary donations made by the team to non-profit organizations through a software program maintained by Eisenreich along with part-time assistants Julie Broeckel and Sandy Roubal. New this fall, organizations will have the ability to make a donation request online at Packers.com.
"We focus on educating the community on the various opportunities there are within the Packers that support non-profit organizations throughout the state," Dworak said. "By building strong relationship ties within the community, it becomes a win-win situation for all.
"We continue to concentrate on being pro-active versus reactive in our roles by informing the community of the importance of lead-time when inquiring about appearance and donation requests."
Community outreach coordinator Jessie Micke takes charge of the department's community events, which include the annual 'Spooktacular Fun,' 'Project LEAP,' Ecumenical Thanksgiving Day Dinner and 'Shindig at 1265,' as well as the 'Fit Kids' program.
'Fit Kids' is for fourth-graders throughout the state of Wisconsin and is a joint effort of the Packers, WFRV CBS 5, and the Green Bay Area Public School District to combat childhood obesity.
Other ongoing programs include the Community Quarterback and Junior Community Quarterback awards, which recognize exemplary volunteers and provide an opportunity to earn additional funds for their organization. There's also the annual Hometown Huddle with the United Way of Brown County, and support for non-profit organizations through public service announcements.
{sportsad300}Along those same lines, the community outreach department is continuing to expand its youth football efforts. While the Grassroots Program, which matches grants to help repair or build youth and high school football fields, continues to prosper, more awareness of the NFL Flag Football program is being sought.
The NFL Flag program provides grants as well as equipment for local youth football programs, which often are organized by local Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCAs.
Tim Schroeder coordinates the youth football initiatives for the department, which include grants for various football programs, coaching schools and forums, along with the 'What Moves U' program. 'What Moves U' is an NFL-wide initiative with a middle-school curriculum that focuses on the importance of proper nutrition and regular exercise for adolescents. The department is looking into expanding the fitness reach to interested schools or youth groups that may incorporate NFL Flag football into their extra-curricular activities or their physical education classes.
"Youth football has increased immensely throughout the league, and we want to incorporate youth football within our fitness initiatives," Dworak said. "NFL Flag is a youth program that both boys and girls have the opportunity to participate in.
"Our goal stems from the NFL Play 60 platform where the focus is for kids to be active 60 minutes a day. It's about getting kids out of the house, keeping fit, along with keeping the game of football alive. We plan to add more opportunities in 2009 with 7-on-7 tournaments, along with Jr. and High School Player Development programs throughout area schools.
"It's amazing how we continue to grow," Dworak said. "The more we can reach out, the more we can make a difference throughout the state."
