MONROE - The Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl XLV just over a month ago, and one Monroe native was right in the middle of it - not on the field, but in the offices upstairs.
"It was incredible. It's one of those things that you could hardly believe it happened," said Joe Simler, a 2004 MHS graduate and current premium seating sales executive for the Packers. "For days it just didn't even settle in. It was just pure joy and excitement after the game. It's hard to even describe."
Simler went to UW-Madison and later spent time working for the Phoenix Coyotes of the NHL and Dallas Cowboys in the NFL.
"Working in college athletics and the NHL, I've really enjoyed the NFL. That's what I grew up following," Simler said. "I think every sport is unique, but the NFL has become America's Pastime. It's been a fun ride so far. It's definitely good to be (working) back home in the Midwest. The culture of this place is just awesome."
Growing up, his favorite team was the Cowboys, and he admitted that it was surreal to be in the brand-new Cowboys Stadium, nicknamed "The Jerry Dome" at the Super Bowl while working for his hometown Packers.
"It was quite the irony. You couldn't have written it up any better," he said. "When I worked down there, the Super Bowl was one of the things everyone talked about. It was two years out (at the time) and it was going to be the biggest event. We were selling that stadium and everyone asked about it.
"The stadium is incredible. In terms of square footage, it's three times the size of Texas Stadium. You walk in and it's just overwhelming. The video board in the center, you see it on TV but it's not as big as it is in person. It's so overwhelming. It's a 7-story building hanging over the field."
Throughout Super Bowl week the NFL saw its share of challenges. Heavy snow and ice storms, coupled with salt-less fixes for the roads and a taxi-cab strike, made it difficult to move around the metro area. But Simler, who said the trip was more for business than for pleasure, was able to soak it all in.
"They don't get a lot of snow down there so it was definitely hard to get around. But as a team it's a business trip so when we're down there it's not really about the Super Bowl parties and all that stuff," he said. "We were able to enjoy the experience and have some fun, but we were there for work.
"I did get a chance to witness some of the cool experiences. The commissioner's party was quite the site. That was a lot of fun. We had a tailgate for employees and their families who came to the game and then the after parties. There was a balance of work and play, but at the end of the day it was still a business trip."
His parents, Don and Marcia, joined him in Dallas for the festivities.
"It was cool to get my parents down there, because I had always told them about (the stadium). It's hard to explain how big it really is," Joe said.
When the game, which was held Feb. 6, came to an end, the confetti fell from the roof. Simler and his co-workers were now a part of history - though most people will remember the players on the field instead of the busy bees in the offices above.
"It is always kind of cool to look at your co-workers and say, 'Hey, we're world champions,'" Simler said. "To work for a team like this, it's great. Everyone's great. The people have worked here for so long. No one leaves. It's been a blast."
In 1996, when Green Bay won it's third Super Bowl - and first since the Lombardi year's in the 1960s - everyone in the organization received the coveted championship ring. Simler said that he was unsure of how rings will be distributed this year, because every team decides differently.
"They haven't made a decision or said one way or the other," he said. "Across the industry in general different teams vary how they do it. It's a team choice either way."
However, Simler has gotten a chance to touch history. Days after the big game, he was able to hold the Lombardi Trophy.
"It (the trophy) doesn't get out that often, but for the people who are able to see it and hold it you realize how many people - players, coaches and everyone - work for something like that. From the start of every training camp that is the goal and yet so many never get to achieve that. It's definitely an honor to be apart of that and hold it," he said. "It's back to business as usual now."
"It was incredible. It's one of those things that you could hardly believe it happened," said Joe Simler, a 2004 MHS graduate and current premium seating sales executive for the Packers. "For days it just didn't even settle in. It was just pure joy and excitement after the game. It's hard to even describe."
Simler went to UW-Madison and later spent time working for the Phoenix Coyotes of the NHL and Dallas Cowboys in the NFL.
"Working in college athletics and the NHL, I've really enjoyed the NFL. That's what I grew up following," Simler said. "I think every sport is unique, but the NFL has become America's Pastime. It's been a fun ride so far. It's definitely good to be (working) back home in the Midwest. The culture of this place is just awesome."
Growing up, his favorite team was the Cowboys, and he admitted that it was surreal to be in the brand-new Cowboys Stadium, nicknamed "The Jerry Dome" at the Super Bowl while working for his hometown Packers.
"It was quite the irony. You couldn't have written it up any better," he said. "When I worked down there, the Super Bowl was one of the things everyone talked about. It was two years out (at the time) and it was going to be the biggest event. We were selling that stadium and everyone asked about it.
"The stadium is incredible. In terms of square footage, it's three times the size of Texas Stadium. You walk in and it's just overwhelming. The video board in the center, you see it on TV but it's not as big as it is in person. It's so overwhelming. It's a 7-story building hanging over the field."
Throughout Super Bowl week the NFL saw its share of challenges. Heavy snow and ice storms, coupled with salt-less fixes for the roads and a taxi-cab strike, made it difficult to move around the metro area. But Simler, who said the trip was more for business than for pleasure, was able to soak it all in.
"They don't get a lot of snow down there so it was definitely hard to get around. But as a team it's a business trip so when we're down there it's not really about the Super Bowl parties and all that stuff," he said. "We were able to enjoy the experience and have some fun, but we were there for work.
"I did get a chance to witness some of the cool experiences. The commissioner's party was quite the site. That was a lot of fun. We had a tailgate for employees and their families who came to the game and then the after parties. There was a balance of work and play, but at the end of the day it was still a business trip."
His parents, Don and Marcia, joined him in Dallas for the festivities.
"It was cool to get my parents down there, because I had always told them about (the stadium). It's hard to explain how big it really is," Joe said.
When the game, which was held Feb. 6, came to an end, the confetti fell from the roof. Simler and his co-workers were now a part of history - though most people will remember the players on the field instead of the busy bees in the offices above.
"It is always kind of cool to look at your co-workers and say, 'Hey, we're world champions,'" Simler said. "To work for a team like this, it's great. Everyone's great. The people have worked here for so long. No one leaves. It's been a blast."
In 1996, when Green Bay won it's third Super Bowl - and first since the Lombardi year's in the 1960s - everyone in the organization received the coveted championship ring. Simler said that he was unsure of how rings will be distributed this year, because every team decides differently.
"They haven't made a decision or said one way or the other," he said. "Across the industry in general different teams vary how they do it. It's a team choice either way."
However, Simler has gotten a chance to touch history. Days after the big game, he was able to hold the Lombardi Trophy.
"It (the trophy) doesn't get out that often, but for the people who are able to see it and hold it you realize how many people - players, coaches and everyone - work for something like that. From the start of every training camp that is the goal and yet so many never get to achieve that. It's definitely an honor to be apart of that and hold it," he said. "It's back to business as usual now."