Inside The Vikings

Vikings Owners Make Classy Gesture to Team's Former GM

The Wilfs replaced all of the game balls Rick Spielman lost during Hurricane Ian.
Will Ragatz|
Vikings Owners Make Classy Gesture to Team's Former GM
Vikings Owners Make Classy Gesture to Team's Former GM

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Minnesota Vikings

A classy gesture from the Wilf family to a former executive is the latest example of the Vikings' top-notch organizational culture.

During Hurricane Ian last September, former Vikings GM Rick Spielman lost most of the game balls he received during his lengthy Minnesota tenure. Last week, to his surprise, the Wilfs — brothers Mark, Zygi, and Lenny and the rest of their family ownership group — sent him replacements for all of those lost balls.

"I wish I could put into words how special the Wilf family is," Spielman tweeted. "I lost all my Viking Game Balls during Hurricane Ian. To my surprise, I received a box today replacing all those game balls. I was truly blessed to work for the Wilf family and thank you from the bottom of my heart."

That's not something the Wilfs had to do, and it tells you a lot about how they treat people and what they've built with the Vikings.

"When I got home, I had a package at my door," Spielman said in a video. "And when I opened up the package, I was at a loss for words. I had expressed to a few people that we had went through Hurricane Ian down here where I live in Sanibel, Florida, and one of the things that I lost was all my memorabilia and a lot of my game balls."

The box came with a message from the Wilfs to Spielman, who became emotional when recounting the story.

"While we cannot make up for the devastation you and your family are experiencing, we hope that this can restore some of the happy memories you have of your many accomplishments with the Minnesota Vikings," Spielman read. "We appreciate everything you did for our organization and continue to think about you, Michelle, and the rest of the kids as you rebuild your life in Florida. Thank you — Zygi, Mark, Lenny, and the Wilf family ownership group."

Stuff like that is what makes sports great. Credit to the Wilfs for such a classy gesture and thanks to Spielman for sharing the story.

Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all offseason long. Also, follow me on Twitter and feel free to ask me any questions on there.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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