DAVE RICKERT
Appleton, WI

I feel my Dad, Dave Rickert should be given the honor of Hall of Fame Packer fan. My Dad attended his first game in 1948 with his father. Over the next few years he was able to go a couple of games when a ticket was available. Starting in 1953, when he was ten years old, his streak began. He has not missed a regular season game or playoff game. He has not missed a minute of any game. He does not leave his seat from the beginning of the game until the end. That makes 53 years of not missing one single game or minute of a game! This has not been an easy task. The reason he does it is for the love of the game and the love of the Packers. My father has lived on a farm all his life in Freedom until he sold it in 1996. This always meant getting up extra early on game days. All the chores needed to be done so that he was able to attend the home games.

My dad also has a wonderful collection of Packers memorabilia. He has a beautiful room in his house dedicated to the Packers. He has everything from books, autographed footballs, a Brett Favre framed and signed jersey, and a Packers lunchbox, table and themed Christmas tree. He has some old ticket stubs when the price of admission was $2.75. My Dad also has footballs that he has caught over the years at Packers games. The seats are in the South end zone and he was able to catch 4 footballs before the nets were used to stop the balls from going into the stands on the field goals and extra points.

My Dad loves to wear his Packers clothes. My parents have done some traveling around the U.S. and no matter where he is someone always will come up to him and talk to him about the Packers because they see he is wearing a Packers shirt. My Dad really enjoys that.

Going to see every single Packers game for 53 years has not always been easy. Several years ago when my Dad had hip replacement surgery he was able to find a ticket in a skybox so he could attend the game in a wheelchair. There was the now famous Ice Bowl game that my Dad was at and also the Snow Bowl game of December 1985 in which no one from his usual group was going to because of the extreme amount of snow, but my Dad said he was going no matter what. He ended up getting stuck just down the road in the family car so he came back and took my car because it had front wheel drive. Nothing would stop him from attending a game and in 53 years nothing has. I think his streak speaks for itself.

Submitted by his daughter, Lisa Rickert.