Location: Soldier Field
Date: Saturday, May 18, 2013; 6:00-11:00 am
I had been to Soldier Field for
various events, but never had I an opportunity to step on to the actual playing
surface. That all would change today, since my
assignment for this event would take me inside the stadium and I must admit
that I was looking forward to that. What
I wasn’t looking forward to was the 6 am reporting time and there was very
little light when I arrived for my check-in.
As they tried to locate my information, there was some confusion
regarding my role and they thought that I would be handing out t-shirts at the entrance. There was no way that I was going to miss out
on going inside and so I clarified what my duties were and almost reluctantly
they sent me inside to locate someone called Katrina. I found her on her way out since she had
realized that she had parked in a wrong spot and she asked me to continue her task
while she took care of the car. The task
was to walk in the stands and ensure that the sponsor’s signs were secured to
the seats and facing inwards, pointing to the field.
For this purpose she handed me a bunch of tie-wraps and some cutters to trim
the edges. The cutters she asked me ‘guard with my life’ and then it was up
to me.
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| The 'reveal' |
There is a strange, almost
indescribable sensation that I feel when entering a sporting arena. I remember years ago when my parents took me
to my first sporting event and I was so excited that I couldn't sleep the
previous night. The excitement continued
all the way as we drove to the stadium and walked through the gates. The best part was what I term, the
‘reveal’ of the lush green playing
field, nestled inside mammoth spectator stands and if I could feel the goose
bumps just sitting in the stands, I could only imagine how the athletes must be
feeling as they stepped on to the field.
I think part of the reason why I felt like that was because all this
time I had only seen sports on the television and just like the players, the stadium
itself had become a celebrity in my mind.
Years since I still get excited to go watch a sporting event live and it's amazing to walk into the arena for the
‘reveal’. Back when I lived in Pittsburgh, I used to
walk past
‘PNC Park’, home of the
‘Pirates’, and
‘Heinz Field’, home of the
‘Steelers’,
almost every Sunday during my walk and while I may not have supported those
teams, the stadiums were a magnificent sight and something that I miss
visiting. So this morning as I stepped
inside for the
‘reveal’, I knew that
waking up before dawn had been worth this sight.
 |
| The signs facing inwards |
I saw what Katrina had been
referring to and walked through the stands checking the sponsors signs and
while most of them were quite secure, a few needed a nudge in the right
direction, while only a couple actually required additional tie-wraps. While doing this task I kept staring at the
field, imagining the view during an actual game. I finished one side and then it was time to
cross the field and over to the other end to do the same. Walking across the same field where NFL
greats have played was once again a terrific feeling and I savored it, taking
several pictures from various angles. I
was just finishing the signs on the other side when Katrina came back and asked
if I could help organize boxes in
‘The Village’. While it sounded cool, essentially it was a
tent where the various teams would come to collect their t-shirts. Many people would be walking as a part
of a team and there was a contest to see which team had come up with the best
t-shirt. These were the boxes with team
t-shirts and our job was to organize them alphabetically so as to ensure easy
distribution later.
 |
| The entrance way that we had to guard |
Once that was done, a man name
Robert gave us our next assignment, which was to go to one of the 4 entrances
on to the field, and guard them. Well, we
were to prohibit anyone from bringing liquid on to the green and more importantly,
nothing with wheels was allowed to come in either. They expected several sponsors to bring they supplies
on a cart or trolley and we were to stop them and help carry to their assigned
tents. This was a directive from the
stadium officials, who did not want tread marks on the surface. I went to the
Northeast entrance with three other youngsters and then it was a lot of
waiting. The entrance led straight into
the loading-unloading area and while everyone had been made aware of the rules
prior to arriving, we did have to tell a few people and at one stage help some
of the sponsors with their boxes. More
than the ‘no wheels’ rule, I had to point out the ‘no liquids’ rule to
people. To be quite honest, this was not
making much sense to me since most people were carrying water and unless I am
missing something, water is good for the grass, right? But I have learned not to question authority
unless you absolutely have to and so I just did my duty and to their credit,
many people complied.
 |
| The field was getting filled |
Right next to our entrance was
where the entertainment stage was set-up and so for the next hour, we saw each
of the acts practice their performance. This
was fun to watch and I saw that a lot, in fact almost all of the performances,
were by youngsters. Teams of boys and
girls or just girls came and practiced and some of them were quite good. Robert came and handed us aprons with pockets
that had pens, sharpie tie-wraps etc., everything that the sponsors may
require. Sure enough, the VIP tent needed
a sign to be tied with tie-wraps and I was able to perform the handy-man
duties. I saw that the other three had
our entrance covered and so went to find Katrina and ask if there was anything
else that she wanted me to do. She said
that one of the other three entrances had let someone with wheels through and
would I mind walking around and reminding those
‘guards’ about the rules. Now,
this operation had to be done tactfully since you do not want to appear condescending
and keep telling people to do their jobs.
So I approached it as if I was out for a stroll and inquired if people
had been giving them trouble. This
seemed to work and I came back to see that most of the sponsors were already
set up. In fact the field was now
getting full with people and all sorts of festivities were underway, such as games and a kids
play area. I walked about the field and
also the perimeter of the stands to visit some of the vendors and get a good
view of the activities on the field.
 |
| The acts were underway |
Our main job for this event was
to be
‘Sponsor’s Attendants’, and so
I came and stood next to a sponsor to see if they needed any…well
attending. They were doing various
activities, one of them being decorating nails with
‘Autism Speaks’ stickers and so it was a hugely popular tent and
there were long lines with women wanting to
‘get
their nails done’. They also had a
bean bag throwing game with a tiny net and I helped run it for the kids in the
line. While there were no prizes for
getting the bag into the net, many kids just loved participating and my job was
to encourage them and then get the bag out of the net and hand it to the next
person. In the meanwhile the
entertainment stage was active and many of the performers, whom we had heard practicing
earlier, were now doing the real thing. One
of the more pleasant surprises for me was to hear that some of the performers
were actually diagnosed with autism as kids and had overcome tremendous odds to
today be on the stage, and share their talent with all of us. One gentleman in particular narrated how he
had been told as a kid that he would never amount to anything and how he had
proved everyone wrong by graduating with a degree. It was great to see him as well as listen to
other peoples stories, such as the guitar player who had flown in specifically for this morning’s event and not only had he taken time out of his schedule, he had somehow managed to secure over 360 iPad donations from people for
'Autism Speaks’. These people were upgrading to a new model and rather than trade-in, they had chosen to donate. I know I have said this many
times in the past but hey it never gets old:
“Everywhere life is full of heroism.”
 |
| Pollock |
We heard stories about Autism and
what is happening with the research. According
to the
‘Autism Speaks’ website:
“Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and autism
are both general terms for a group of complex disorders of brain development.
These disorders are characterized, in varying degrees, by difficulties in
social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive
behaviors. They include autistic disorder, Rett syndrome, childhood
disintegrative disorder, pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise
specified (PDD-NOS) and Asperger syndrome.
Autism appears to have its roots in very early brain development.
However, the most obvious signs of autism and symptoms of autism tend to emerge
between 2 and 3 years of age. Autism Speaks continues to fund research on
effective methods for earlier diagnosis, as early intervention with proven
behavioral therapies can improve outcomes. Increasing autism awareness is a key
aspect of this work and one in which our families and volunteers play an
invaluable role.” This is why all of
us were here. People had come out in
thousands to support the cause, including Pollock, who is a 5 year old service
dog. I asked his owner about him and she
said that he is a therapy dog for kids with learning disability and she takes
him to schools where he sits while kids read to him. The cuteness of the idea is outrageously
overwhelming and I told her that Pollock would be more than welcome to come for
Chicago Cares’
‘Pet Therapy’
project.
 |
| My day was off to a great start |
Soon it was 10:30 and people were
ready to set off for the walk. As they
left the stadium, sponsors started packing up and I asked if there was anything
that I could do. Most had things under control
and so I walked about the field and took some more pictures before heading
out. Today was a big day for me with an
event later that I had been looking forward to for a long time. But based on all that I had witnessed this
morning, my day had already got off to a terrific start.
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