Gorches: Packers added to Valpo family’s loyalties

• Reprints

Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose poses with Jack Elia (right) of Valparaiso and his son Nick at a United Way function at the United Center in Chicago last year. | PHOTO PROVIDED

Article Extras

Updated: January 10, 2012 8:25AM

Working at one of Northwest Indiana’s casinos, Jack Elia knows a little bit about gambling.

But when it comes to the “ stock investment” he made on Tuesday, there was no gamble involved.

In fact, it was a terrible investment since the return on these shares of stock is zero, except for a couple perks, including some pretty big bragging rights.

Bragging about being part of the only publicly-owned major pro sports franchise in the country.

Bragging about being an owner of the sport’s leader in overall titles.

Bragging about being an owner of the sport’s current champion.

Bragging about your team not losing a game so far this season.

In case you couldn’t figure it out, that would be the Green Bay Packers and Elia’s so-called investment was purchasing a couple shares of ownership when the franchise opened up its fifth stock offering in franchise history.

The team provided 250,000 shares for sale at a cost of $250 each to raise money for an upcoming $143 million expansion to Lambeau Field. Despite a tough economy, about 185,000 of those shares were sold in the first two days of what is promoted as “believing in the great American dream.”

Sitting at 12-0 as the defending Super Bowl champs probably has a little to do with that.

So what do fans such as Elia get for that $250?

Not much, but it’s a heck of a marketing ploy and a more fan-friendly method of financing stadium expansion than raising taxes or tickets prices.

Shareholders get a piece of paper declaring them a team owner, the right to vote for the board of directors (which includes team president Mark Murphy) and tickets for the annual stockholder meeting at Lambeau every July before training camp.

This year shareholders also had the opportunity to purchase their very own Super Bowl rings.

New shares can be given as gifts, but once ownership is established, shares can only be transferred between family members.

So why would Elia, a Valparaiso resident and native of Boston, basically donate money to the Green Bay Packers?

“I got them for my sons,” said Jack, a diehard Boston Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and New England Patriots fan who admits he “just can’t get rid of” his strong accent despite living away from the east coast for eight years.

“They get a piece of paper saying they’re Packers owners.”

Those sons are James, 20, and Nick, 19, who are both away at different colleges.

“James is a Packer fanatic,” Jack said. “He has a Brett Favre-signed shirt and football. In his younger days, he was all about Brett Favre, Brett Favre, Brett Favre.”

Sounds just like national media coverage the last couple years, including rumors that he was coming back in recent weeks.

Nick, on the other hand, isn’t a Packers fan. He likes the Denver Broncos, which is the second-hottest team in the NFL thanks to Tim Tebow mania.

“He has a Broncos golf bag and a signed John Elway picture,” Jack said.

Nick’s also a big Bulls fan who got to meet the best current Bulls player.

“We got to meet Derrick Rose at a United Way function at the United Center,” Jack said.

If it seems like sports is an integral part of the Elias life, you’d be correct. Jack’s wife, Margaret, has run two marathons. Nick plays tennis. James ran track and field at Valparaiso High School, setting a sectional record in the 300-meter hurdles a couple years ago.

And the Elia family also has plenty of conflict when it comes to sports loyalty.

Somehow, the Bostonian married a New Yorker in Margaret who likes the Mets and Yankees — that’s an additional conflict right there within her own fandom — as well as the Patriots’ biggest rival.

“She’s all Jets, Jets, Jets,” Jack said, sounding resigned to their football season conflict.

But for some reason the couple who are big city team fans bought stock in a franchise located in the smallest professional sports city.

That makes no sense.

Nick sides with mom on being a Yankees fan, and even carried it to the practical joke stage by getting a Louisville Slugger bat, putting “Yankees” on it, and sending it to his uncle Joe, a Red Sox fan.

“He goes toe-to-toe with Joe,” Jack said with a laugh.

The conflict continues with Jack’s sons, who attend some pretty heated rival schools.

Nick was admitted into the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University as a freshman, while James studies engineering at Purdue in West Lafayette.

“Now Nick is all about IU basketball,” Jack said. “He’s been to every (home) game.”

Not a bad team to be following since the Hoosiers are 8-0.

But at least James and Nick have common ground in being owners of the Green Bay Packers, thanks to their Patriots’ fan dad.

And maybe they can talk about it on Feb. 4, when the IU men’s basketball teams travels to West Lafayette to face Purdue. Then after the game, they can head back down I-65 to hang out with fellow shareholders the next day at the Super Bowl in Indianapolis since that’s where it looks like the Packers could be headed.