MILWAUKEE — The Packers are making their way across southern Wisconsin from April 9th through 13th for their Packers Tailgate tour. The tour began today, and the second stop was in Milwaukee at Messmer High School. Current players Elgton Jenkins, Kenny Clark, and Rasheed Walker along with former players Bryan Bulaga, Mike Daniels, and Alex Green joined Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy for the tour.
Murphy said there’s nothing like seeing the fans in person.
“We always say we have great fans, but when you go on a five-day trip like this… going across the state… you really get an appreciation of how special our fans are,” he said.
He told WTMJ that during their pre-tour process for picking the schools, Messmer stood out as a place they had to visit, and when it was time to speak to the over 500 students at the school, the faculty had a topic in mind to discuss.
“Perseverance,” he said. “Some of the people in the school office there said perseverance is an issue for a lot of the students.”
So all of the players shared their perseverance experiences and made sure to drive home the topic to the students. Former Packers Defensive tackle told WTMJ that he made a concerted effort to interact and joke with the students as he spoke to them.
“When you’re speaking with kids, you need to connect with them… you need them to feel comfortable when they’re listening to you,” he said. “I noticed there was a lot of chattering, then all of a sudden it was like you could hear a pen drop when I was talking because I was making a concerted effort to say, ‘Guys, I understand you. Guys, I’ve been where you’re at, and I’m not talking down to you like I’m an adult but talking to you like someone who understands.’ I think when you give that type of respect, then it’s given back.”
Senior Messmer football player Jonte told WTMJ what it meant to him for the players to come all the way out to their school.
“Where I come from… a lot of people not doing that,” he said. “I come from a bad place, [and] I’ve been through a lot. So for all of them to be out here, it means a lot.”
Another senior football player, Taveon, agreed and explained how he received the players’ message.
“It was inspiring,” he said. “I play football, so of course I like the Packers. My favorite team in the NFL… seeing that those guys actually did [persevered]… it’s possible. I know that I’m able to do it too.”
Messmer Principal Shenora Staten-Jordan said this was the perfect event to kick off the start of their 4th quarter for the school year and inspire their students.
“So many of our students have so many hurdles they are facing in school, but also outside of school–socially, personally, professionally, and also academically. I wanted to have someone else to encourage them to remind them that in spite of those hurdles they can still be successful,” she said.
She said that she’s the normal voice always pouring love onto them, but it helps to have another voice outside of her echo those same themes to the students.
“I think it meant so much to our students,” she said. “to see people who are professional athletes, that look like them and have similar backgrounds as them as well, persevere and become some of the greatest athletes of our time.”
