WILLMAR — David Peterson and Teresa Frank went to the Minnesota Vikings game against the Green Bay Packers on a Monday night just before Christmas dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus.

For these two, this is not unusual. The season ticket holders are always dressed up and having fun at games.

Vikings game personnel asked them to come down on the field for a promotional video with Victor, the Vikings’ mascot.

It was then that Peterson and Frank found out they had been had.

“They got us good,” Peterson said with an ever-present smile.

The two were presented with tickets to Sunday’s Super Bowl and an all-expenses-paid trip to Florida. They were selected by the team out of all Vikings season-ticket holders. Taken into consideration was their charity work, which includes occasionally giving up some of their seats for less fortunate folks, as well as work through their church at nursing homes, veterans functions and as volunteers for Hope For Our City in Willmar.

“It’s pretty neat,” Frank said.

Hope For Our City is “a collaborative effort with (the) Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Minneapolis,” according to its website. Volunteers, businesses and restaurants work to “fight hunger by distributing nutritious food to anyone who comes” to weekly distributions in various locations, including Willmar.

Their volunteer work, their general good-natured approach to life and their being die-hard Vikings fans helped earn them the Super Bowl trip.

They dress as clowns and make balloon hats, flowers and animals, sometimes at Vikings games. The team took note.

“This is very exciting,” Frank said of the Super Bowl trip to Florida. “We’re looking forward to it.”

Nice surprise

They also were in shock at the Packers game Dec. 23 at U.S. Bank Stadium. They found out they were getting Super Bowl tickets. The San Francisco 49ers play the Kansas City Chiefs at 5:30 pm. Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. (On Fox, KMSP-TV Ch. 9 in Minneapolis).

Peterson, 65, from Svea, said when he could barely remember that the Vikings lost (23-10) to

Green Bay that night.

“Was there more of a game that day?” Peterson asked with a smile

“It was pretty unbelievable,” said Frank, 65, of Willmar. “I was just standing there dumbfounded.

“I didn’t know what to say.”

Peterson and Frank leave Friday morning for the airport and a flight to Miami. They have a full schedule beginning that night, from listening to the NFL’s senior vice president of officiating, Al Riveron, to meeting other NFL dignitaries and attending a banquet.

“It’s not a game; it’s an experience,” Peterson said.

A couple

Peterson and Frank met through church a few years ago. Peterson calls Frank his “girlfriend.”

Both lost partners. Peterson’s wife died after a long battle with breast cancer. Frank’s husband died from complications from diabetes. They hit it off.

“You’ve got to watch out for them church-basement ladies,” Peterson quipped.

Peterson began getting season tickets when the Vikings moved to U.S. Bank Stadium in 2016. Peterson grew up on a dairy farm and worked all the hours that go with taking care of 100 cows and 1,200 acres with his father. He had never been to a Vikings game before 2015, believe it or not.

While season tickets can be costly, it’s their primary source of entertainment for the retirees.

“We don’t drink; we don’t gamble,” Peterson said. “You’ve got to have something.”

Peterson said he quit drinking alcohol 38 years ago.

“And some say I haven’t sobered up yet,” he quipped.

Both feel pulled to help others, whether it’s working with Wounded Warriors for disabled veterans, or cheering seniors up at Bethesda in Willmar, where the two perform as clowns.

“We know how important it can be to put a little joy into somebody’s life,” Frank said.

“We can’t give what they (more well-off people) can,” Peterson said. “But we can encourage.”

Their act — they’re known to dress up in makeup for Vikings games — has drawn attention.

“We can hardly get 10 feet sometimes where people want to take a picture,” Peterson said.

Their spreading of good will has been paid back with a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

“This is just an absolute gift,” Frank said. “What did we do to deserve this?”



