Tonight, more than 15,000 Creighton basketball fans will file into the Qwest Center to cheer on the Bluejays. All of those in attendance tonight have been affected in one way or another by the severe economic conditions experienced in the United States during the past year and a half. With unemployment at 10% and families struggling to make ends meet, the current economic climate forces many families to make difficult decisions with their disposable income. But some of the folks at tonight’s home opener are recipients of a ticket giveaway orchestrated by CU to help lessen the burden of these difficult economic times on some Omaha families.
Two months ago, Creighton announced it would give a limited number of men’s basketball season tickets to individuals or families who, for whatever reason, don’t have the ability to pay for tickets due to a recent change in their financial situations. Potential recipients could nominate themselves or other Jays fans could share their stories with the Athletic Department, and Creighton would provide as many tickets as they could.
I caught up with the father of one of the families that received tickets through this program for the 2009-2010 season. Chris and his family moved to Omaha in 2006 from Seattle, as his wife is a Nebraska native. “I was brought up as an Oregon ducks fan. I was born in Oregon, but we always followed the Jays as much as we could, as my wife is from Nebraska and went to Central High,” Chris said. “When we arrived in Omaha, we were fortunate enough to move in next door to a Creighton Alumnus. He would take me to an occasional game if he had an extra ticket. We loved going to the games,” he said.
Chris currently works for a local real estate company and was hit pretty hard by the downturn in the housing market. At the same time, a little less than a year ago, Chris and his wife were blessed with three baby boys. That’s right, triplets. So multiply the medical bills by three and divide everything by the slow economy, and the numbers can be suffocating. “With the lack of movement in the housing market, the addition of medical bills made it a bit tougher,” Chris said. “We were given the opportunity from our neighbor to purchases some season tickets, as he had a friend who would not be able to make it to the games this year and next for whatever reason. I thought about it for a while, but decided it was just not the right time for us to make that commitment.”
That is when his friend told him about the Creighton Athletic Department’s ticket option. He decided he would enter his story and see what happened. In early November, Chris and his family received notice that they would be given two upper-bowl season tickets for the season, with the right to renew next season. “We were thrilled,” he said. “We are really excited to watch the team this season, and are really grateful for the opportunity to attend all the games.”