The Milwaukee Brewers and Milwaukee Bucks are lending a hand to part-time workers at Miller Park and Fiserv Forum who are temporarily out of work due the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
Milwaukee's major league sports venues have
sat empty for the past month as sports seasons, concerts and other events are postponed or canceled in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. No events means no work for employees whose hourly wages depend on stadiums bringing in customers.
Six Brewers and radio announcer Bob Uecker are contributing to the Brewers' $1 million fund for Miller Park game day workers, the team announced Monday. Ryan Braun was the first to commit with a $100,000 pledge and Uecker added another $50,000. Lorenzo Cain, Corey Knebel, Josh Lindblom, Brent Suter and Christian Yelich joined with additional pledges, for a total of $300,000.
“This pandemic has created difficult financial situations for many (staff at Miller Park), and I know I speak for my teammates in saying that we want to do our part to help address the critical needs," said Braun. "We know this doesn’t solve the problem, but along with the contribution from the Brewers and the (team principal owner Mark) Attanasio family, we believe this fund can help support those who are most in need.”
The Bucks announced last week the team has established a $500,000 emergency relief fund for part-time employees of Fiserv Forum, its third party vendors Levy Restaurants, ABM Facility Services, Reef Parking and SP+ Parking Management Services, and Menominee Nation Arena in Oshkosh, which is home of its G League team the Wisconsin Herd.
The Bucks have already provided $500,000 in financial assistance to part-time employees, thanks to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton who stepped up at the outset of the coronavirus' local impact. Their donations were followed by contributions from the entire Bucks roster. Bucks ownership matched all player donations.
“Our part-time arena staff is there for us day in and day out, and we want to be there for them during this tumultuous time,” said Alex Lasry, senior vice president of the Bucks. “We are thankful for the generous financial support by every Bucks player, team management and team ownership for these deserving employees, and we will look to continue to raise additional funds for this relief effort.”
The Bucks' emergency relief fund is administered by the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, and supported by the Milwaukee Bucks Foundation.Â
In addition to Miller Park's employee fund, Braun and Yelich have made financial contributions to provide thousands of meals to health care providers working with four major hospital networks during the crisis, including Aurora Health Care. The program is led by 3rd St. Market Hall and is backed by American Family Insurance, Associated Bank, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company and Sargento.
The two MVP's philanthropic organization, California Strong, is also involved several in COVID-19 relief efforts.
Get more news and insights in the March 30 issue of BizTimes Milwaukee:
