As a UW Oshkosh student in 1989, Mark Schiefelbein accepted an internship with the Green Bay Packers. Little did he know that internship would lead to nearly 20 years at the Packers organization — a tenure that has included two Superbowls.

After completing the public relations internship, Schiefelbein was hired full-time to handle media relations including Packer players’ interviews and press conferences. Later, he took on a larger public relations role involving team travel. Lucky for him, the team travel stint was during the two Superbowl appearances in the 1990s.

“We essentially had to move our offices to New Orleans and San Diego for those events,” he said, adding that it was a great example of the entire organization working together for the greater good.

“That is what we are all about here,” he said.

Today, the Reedsburg native is director of administrative affairs, a position that includes community outreach, family programs, corporate travel, internal events, the Packers Hall of Fame and player development.

“Of course the most rewarding part of my job is game day,” he said. “No matter who works here, we are all here to help the team win.”

This season has been especially exciting, and now that the Packers are in the playoffs, the momentum continues to build. During the recent game in St. Louis, Mo., for example, Schiefelbein said Packer fans occupied half the stadium.

“To be a small part of it is great. To grow up in Wisconsin and work for the team you cheered for as a kid — it is a dream come true,” he said.

Three other alumni work for the Packers—Ann (Christopherson) Dabeck, ’82, Beth (Carns) Haws, ’85, and Nicole (Chaloupka) Ledvina, ’98.

Dabeck, who majored in art education, found teaching jobs scarce when she graduated in 1982. So she pursued other career options, and ended up in retail services.

When she and her husband, Michael Dabeck, ’82, had children, she opted to work part-time. She landed a job as a receptionist for the Packers, and later transferred to the finance and human resources department, where she works today as payroll and human resources assistant.

Working for the Packers, of course, has its share of opportunities for fun. On special event days — Fan Fest, Draft Day and the shareholders meeting — employees like Dabeck get to pitch in.

“It’s fun to mix and mingle with the fans and see their excitement when meeting the players at the autograph stages,” she said.

Meanwhile, Ledvina applied for a blind newspaper ad five years ago and had no idea she was applying to work for the Packers. Someone from human resources — the department she now works in — called her at home and left her a message.

“I saw ‘Green Bay Pack’ on my caller ID and the rest cut off. I thought I was returning a call to Green Bay Packaging,” she said. “I was caught off-guard to say the least when I realized where I was actually calling.”

Ledvina was hired as the Packers human resources generalist. As the first full-time human resources professional for the Packers, her role was to help develop the department. Before she was hired, each department did its own thing to advertise positions, hire and train employees.

The best parts of her job are enjoying the Packers’ family-like culture and the undeniable excitement of every candidate she interviews. “It is very rewarding to be able to go to work every day and experience that,” she said.

Haws joined the Packers in 2003, shortly following the Lambeau Field renovation. After graduating from UW Oshkosh with a degree in biology, she had found a job just down the road from campus at the Radisson, now the Park Plaza, on Main Street. She later worked in convention sales management for hotels in Tennessee and Alabama.

In her current role as Packers’ special events corporate sales manager, she coordinates all meetings and other non-game day events at Lambeau Field. Guest lists have reached as high as 8,000.

Planning events at Lambeau Field is unlike any other job in her field, she said.

“Conventions come and go, but this job is never mundane because people are genuinely excited to attend at an event at Lambeau Field,” she said.