July 26th, 2005

Vic Gross thinks nothing of spending four, five — even six hours at a University of Louisville sporting event. He’s not tailgating before a football game, or socializing with friends. He’s working — on the job well before the first fan arrives and until after the last fan leaves.

Gross, a semiretired financial analyst with GE Appliances and U of L alumnus, is one of about 70 Cards Club Special Forces members who give their time at athletic events to help fans find their seats, work spotlights, sound the touchdown horn, answer questions and act as goodwill ambassadors for the university. While they don’t get paid, they do find rewards in other ways.

Having “a U of L coach come over and say ‘thank you for being here’ is priceless,” Gross said.

The Special Forces will enter its fifth year with the beginning of football season. One of the primary responsibilities of volunteers is to direct fans to their seats, but Special Forces members are more than just ushers.

“Our program was started with the concept of being not just an usher program, but more so as an ambassadorship program,” said Maggi Constantz, Special Forces coordinator.

Special Forces members, known as “yellow shirts” because of their distinctive apparel, work every university athletic event held on campus, including NCAA and conference tournaments.

Duties for each sport are a little different, Gross said. At volleyball matches, for instance, in addition to taking tickets at the door and helping with seating, yellow shirts also hand out programs and special giveaway items such as T-shirts and wristbands.

“At the softball games, we get to chase foul balls that go into the street,” he said.

“One function we serve at Freedom Hall is operating the spotlights for player introductions,” Gross said. “It’s a long climb to the top of Freedom Hall, but it’s a fun task.”

Debby Kalbfleisch, an employee in the U of L Human Resources Department, shines the spotlight on Coach Rick Pitino. She was the second person to volunteer for the Special Forces.

“I went to the first meeting and could not believe they were going to let me come to watch the games… give me a uniform to wear, and (all) they asked us to do was be good representatives of U of L and offer exceptional customer service,” she said. “I asked if they would let me do this every year!

“What a perfect situation. I have never been able to go to games before, so this was the perfect way for me to enjoy U of L sports — especially basketball, which is one of my passions,” she said.

Kalbfleisch volunteers for at least 20 sporting events a year. In addition to men’s basketball, she has worked men and women’s soccer, field hockey, women’s basketball, volleyball, baseball and softball.

Volunteers make a seven-event minimum commitment to be fulfilled over a whole season (generally late August through the /files/storyimages/of May), Constantz said.

Special Forces members who work 20 or more events in one season earn special rewards. Their first-year reward is a three-in-one jacket for outdoor sports. Every year after that, they earn another type of reward. Last year it was the same Adidas warm-up jacket the basketball team wears.

Volunteer hours can be long. Special Forces members usually are on duty from the time the doors open (1 1/2 hours before game time) until the last person leaves the facility. For some sports, a shift is longer.

“Football is generally a 6 1/2-hour event for ushers because they must arrive 2 1/2 hours early for a team meeting and be at their post when the gates open,” Constantz said. “In addition, they must stay until the stands are cleared.”

Volunteers think there are benefits to the long hours, though.

“I like to get there early and stay late,” said Gross, who primarily works events in Cardinal Park. “By getting there first, I’m there to greet the student athletes’ parents. They’re always the first to arrive. By staying late, we get to hear the compliments from visiting university officials, parents, players and fans regarding Cardinal Park facilities.”

“We get to greet all the fans as they arrive and share the excitement of the event,” Kalbfleisch said. “We all cheer together, and that’s fun.”

Being “smack in the middle of all that energy and enthusiasm and comraderie with the fans and fellow ushers” are some of the job’s perks, Constantz said. Other perks are more tangible. Athletics furnishes volunteers with a yellow shirt, ball cap, football and basketball media guides and parking passes.

With the expectation that the football stadium will sell out this year, Constantz said Athletics anticipates a need for more Special Forces members.

“We have a roster of 70 active folks, but actually need around 100,” she said.

Besides the obvious criterion of being a huge U of L fan, Constantz said, criteria for volunteers are having a huge heart with the desire to be helpful and common sense because they will deal with all sorts of situations.

To volunteer for the Special Forces, complete a form online, s/files/storyimages/an e-mail to Constantz or call her at 502-852-2471.