How do I love THE Aaron Rodgers story? Let me count the ways.

OK, I overstated that a bit, but if you read last week, I do love stories, and this one is fantastic.

He waited his turn.  He overcame much adversity (see Brett Favre). He followed a legend (very few examples of that ever go well). His team gets the major injury bug during the season and in the biggest game of the year.

And in this day and age, do you know what he didn’t do?  Cry about it. Moan and groan. Draw attention to himself. He was a team player. He led by example. He let his play do the talking (and yes, I love the championship belt gimmick!).

I loved his composure every time he was shown on the sidelines in Dallas and every time I saw the Packers. Do you know what I loved most? He grabbed his opportunity. He made the most of it. He has exactly the number of championships as #4. Brett one, Aaron one.

An opportunity presented itself, and a champion was crowned.

Most everyone thought the Packers and Ted Thompson were crazy for saying “See you, Brett, it’s Aaron’s turn.” I did. You probably did.

The Packers represent everything good about sports. The fans own the team in a heartbeat of America, blue-collar, small town (especially by NFL standards). They pride themselves on cheese. The NFL championship trophy is called, what else, the Lombardi trophy. He knew a little something about Green Bay.

If you had no dog in the fight, how can you cheer against the Pack? I’d say the same about Rodgers.

I love when people overcome. Overcoming is step one, becoming a champ is a bigger step. Sure, many of us face bigger things in life than media scrutiny, following a legend, while making millions to play a child’s game as a career.

That’s just it. You and I struggle. Maybe you think you are watching life pass by, as you are on the sidelines. You have maybe been dealt some blows, that hit hard, more impacting in life than a regular-season football game or a Super Bowl.

But do you know what? You have opportunities all the time, that come in challenging, tragic, maybe even ideal forms. What you do with it, will determine if you are a champion! Once achieved, I bet you’ll be able to count the ways!

• SEE THE ATTACHED DOCUMENT: Dine @ TGI Friday’s (kids eat free!) tomorrow, TUES 2/8/11, & the Gathering gets 20% kickback. You win, and the Gathering wins! Print and take in to eat!
• Comedian Jeff Allen will be performing @ www.ecaoh.com on 3/12/11 (contact Jessica Dewey, jdewey@ecaoh.com or 390-3777,  for more information)
• The last week left in our DESIRES Lunch Series - http://tinyurl.com/2fa77ap - is FRI guys.  We are averaging 40/week. Please RSVP by WED afternoon! Another series will be coming this summer!
• Chamber annual meeting is 2/16/11 (a must-attend event & then some) – http://tinyurl.com/4lsvp6l!!
• SAVE THE DATE: US Senate Chaplain Barry Black will be here for our 4th Annual Outreach Event (a dinner, not a breakfast) @ www.ecaoh.com on SAT, 5/7/11!