GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – George Oudhuis of Rolling Prairie, Indiana, was named the 23rd member of the Green Bay Packers FAN Hall of Fame on Wednesday.
“There’s so many great Packer fans in the world that could be standing here instead of me. I’m just honored to be the one this year,” Oudhuis said. “I’ve never lived in Green Bay. I go there a lot! But Green Bay has been in me, my whole life.”
Oudhuis was selected by fans from 10 finalists during a voting period that ran from Jan. 1-31st. More than 71,800 votes were cast from throughout the United States and countries around the world.
The Indiana native became a Packers fan when he was 9-years-old.
“We’d go to church in the morning, come home and have dinner, then start watching football. On TV, it was usually the Packers and Bears in the area we lived,” Oudhuis explained. “You become enamored by that. Then as a kid, you grab your white T-shirt that you’re not supposed to write on and you put Bart Starr’s number on it and go out in the field and try to emulate what they’re doing. And that just kind of took off.”
And when he got a call from Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy on Wednesday, those feelings came rushing back.
“I’m like a little kid again right now,” Oudhuis said. “My knees are shaking, I could just fall down right now. It’s one of the best days of my life.”
He’s spent his life collecting Packers memorabilia, including gifts from family and friends for birthdays and Father’s Days, as well as childhood keepsakes like his first Ray Nitschke jersey. His collection is housed in his basement, and he shares the special place in his home with visitors, friends and loved ones to tell the story of the Packers and encourage the next generation of fans.
Oudhuis has been nominated every year for more than a decade, including his friend Jim Brandt, who used his nomination essay this year to share how Oudhuis works to convert his fellow community members and fans of other teams to support the Packers.
This year marks the fourth time Oudhuis has been a finalist for the FAN Hall of Fame.
“I lost three times, it’s okay to lose. But it’s sure OK to win, I’ll tell you that!” Oudhuis said. “It’s a moment in my life – it’s not something you wait for, because you don’t know if you’re ever going to get it – but that’s something that once you get it, it’s just totally amazing.”
His dedication to the team is further exemplified by his key to the City of Green Bay, with which Oudhuis was presented when he helped unveil the street sign honoring Donald Driver Way in 2013.
He says he’s clearing a spot on the wall right next to that key to hang his Hall of Fame plaque.
“This award is just such an honor to me. My parents, but I hope they’re shining down on me right now just smiling, knowing that our name is going to go on that wall in Green Bay at Lambeau Field,” Oudhuis said. “Packer fans are awesome. And when get to be around a whole bunch of them all the time, it’s just fantastic.”
In honor of his selection, Oudhuis will receive four club seats to a 2021 Packers home game; a $500 Packers Pro Shop gift certificate; a road trip for two to a 2021 Packers away game, including game tickets, air fare and hotel accommodations; and a one-year subscription to Packer Plus.
Oudhuis also will have his name permanently displayed in a place of honor in the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame.
This year’s other finalists included: Jane Rietmann from Merrimac, Wis., Fred Ihlenfeldt Sr. from Kewaunee, Wis., Jeff Padon from Severn, Md., Ken Trinkner from De Pere, Wis., Leo DeGroot from West Bend, Wis., Patrick (Pat) Suplicki from Stevens Point, Wis., Bob Parker from Green Bay, Gene C. Lasch from Shawano, Wis., and Jeanne Beardsley from Ellsworth, Wis.
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