TERRE HAUTE — When the Indianapolis Colts received the Vince Lombardi trophy, they had the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology housekeepers with them.
The housekeepers had sent the team a signed poster before the championship.
“We had it in the locker room and we took it to the Dome and had it in the locker room at the Dome, and we took it to Miami with us and we had it in the locker room at the Dolphins’ Complex, and we took it to the locker room in the stadium and we had it in the stadium,” said Colts’ President Bill Polian. “So when Jim [Irsay] and Tony [Dungy] and I went up on the stage and Peyton [Manning] to receive that trophy, we took you with us.”
Polian appeared with the trophy Tuesday at Rose-Hulman for an evening of thank yous — to the Rose-Hulman employees and Wabash Valley supporters.
Fans gathered, holding “Super Colts” signs, in the Hulbert Arena to get a glimpse of the trophy and hear Polian speak. Rose-Hulman President Gerald Jakubowski, Pete Ciancone, communications director for Terre Haute, and Dave Patterson, director of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, also spoke.
Patterson said the partnership between Rose-Hulman and the Colts makes Terre Haute known as a wonderful place.
“On behalf of the Terre Haute Convention and Visitors Bureau, my board of directors and the community, thank you both,” he said. “Not just for your achievements, but the way you achieve. It’s truly first class.”
Ciancone was standing in for Terre Haute Mayor Kevin Burke to thank the Colts on behalf of the city and had one question: “Repeat, anybody?”
His question was answered with cheers and applause.
To thank Jakubowski, Patterson and Burke, Polian presented them with championship hats autographed by himself and Colts coach Tony Dungy.
He later told the audience, “I wish I could give you all a [championship] ring.”
A raffle for four tickets to a Colts game seated in the lower level and two footballs made for the Super Bowl also took place.
The role Rose-Hulman plays in the Colts’ season is important because it’s at training camp where the team bonds and does everything needed to prepare for the season, Polian said.
He thinks the team couldn’t receive the same treatment it receives at Rose-Hulman anywhere else.
“ … The care that people take to make sure everything we do is first rate,” he said. “ … I’ve never been around a staff that cares as much for the players as this group does.”
Jakubowski believes that the Colts do as much for Rose-Hulman as Rose-Hulman does for the Colts, he said.
“It’s really a 50/50 partnership. We enjoy helping them and of course with the publicity that we get back from them, it helps Rose-Hulman and it also helps the city of Terre Haute,” he said. “It’s really a win-win situation.”
When the presentation was over, a DVD highlighting the Colts’ season was played as people lined up to get pictures with or of the trophy and autographs from Polian.
Rose-Hulman senior Matt Childs of Winamac has been a Colts fan since he was big enough to watch television, he said.
Childs said he never doubted that the Colts would win the Super Bowl and thinks they can do it again.
“I think they have a pretty good chance,” he said.
Raffle winner David Harding of Terre Haute has been a season ticket holder for the last nine years and has been to training camp every year, he said.
Harding was excited to win the four tickets to a Colts game even though he already has tickets — because they are better seats, he said.
Getting away from the distractions of Indianapolis and being able to focus are some of the things Harding thinks makes Rose-Hulman a good place for camp for the Colts, he said.
“If you get a good start, the outcome’s got to be good,” Harding said.
Clinton resident J.R. Randall, a Colts fan for six years, said having training camp at Rose-Hulman makes a difference because the employees consider the team family.
“A lot of the players call the housekeepers ‘mom,’” said Randall, whose wife is a housekeeper. “They are their Terre Haute moms.”
Crystal Garcia can be reached at (812) 231-4271 or crystal.garcia@tribstar.com.
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Evening of thanks: Colts show appreciation to Terre Haute, Rose-Hulman
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