A Visit to Fargo with Adam Thielen
During the month of June, there was anticipation and excitement buzzing through the Fargo air; one guy, in particular, was at the top of everyone’s minds—Minnesota Vikings wide receiver, Adam Thielen.
It was a jam-packed couple days with Adam and his wife, Caitlin starting with an early morning tailgating party at The Stage at Island Park. Everyone who attended was able to fill up on coffee and yummy treats, play a few yard games or even toss a football around with fellow community members. By the time it was over we were wide awake and ready for the biggest 1 Million Cups showing in Fargo history.
Surrounded by hundreds of people and even more live stream viewers, Adam and Caitlin spoke about what inspired them to launch the Thielen Foundation and their journey.
With two children of their own, Adam and Caitlin both knew they wanted to focus on helping youth. They just didn’t know where to start, that is, until they got a chance to meet some young kids going through tough medical situations at the University of Minnesota’s Masonic Children’s Hospital—there was an immediate connection and the rest was history.
Since then, Adam and Caitlin have been busy spending the past year getting the foundation on its feet, hosting several youth camps, and learning how to navigate the business.
As for the foundation’s future?
“We haven’t told anyone yet, so you’re the first ones to know,” Adam said with a smile right before announcing that the Thielen Foundation would be partnering with an underprivileged high school in the Twin Cities. The goal is to provide young athletes with resources for school and sports so they can finish their sports seasons, graduate on time, and hopefully expand to other schools and communities.
The rest of the afternoon, Adam and Caitlin got a chance to tour a few of our locations to see what Choice Bank was all about! They spent time visiting with some of our team members, learning a little bit about banking, and even jumped behind our teller line to surprise some lucky customers in the drive-thru.
Then we closed out the evening at the Oxbox Country Club for our Thielen Foundation Fundraiser Gala. And with over 250 guests filling the main ballroom, it was a full house!
There was delicious food, fine wine, and brownie a la mode—a Thielen family dessert favorite. Throughout the rest of the evening, there were plenty of opportunities for guests to snag a picture with Adam and Caitlin as well as partake in an exciting live auction that included an autographed Kenney Chesney guitar, Vikings game day experiences, and a special opportunity to golf with Adam. By the end, we were able to raise more than $160,000 for the Thielen Foundation!
With a busy day behind us, we were ready to have a little bit of fun. The next day at Shanley High School we teamed up with Sanford Health to host a free youth football camp featuring Adam. Over 200 kids from K – 8th grade joined us for a morning of learning, drills, and one-on-one football instruction with the help of football coaches from the school and ETS. It was a great way to end Adam’s visit on a high note!
With an overarching theme on youth development, the Thielen Foundation aims to create programs that serve, educate and inspire individuals so they’re equipped and empowered to reach their full potential in life. The Thielen motto to “achieve your full potential” is a guiding principle lived out by Adam every day and is meant to inspire and motivate individuals to overcome challenges and adversity so they are able to tackle some of life’s biggest goals.
Visit thielenfoundation.org for more information.