Super + Bowl

Hello All,

Well, my team did not win the Super Bowl. Though I have to give props to Patrick Mahomes; he threw potentially catchable balls from the wildest positions ever! I have to give praise to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they came to win! The defensive line played the best I have seen them play – and Tom Brady was on point! I always hope for a close game, so though the game was not quite “super”, there were some incredibly “super” moments.

That flyover was spectacular! It was the first of its kind with three different Air Force bombers, a trifecta! The B-52 flew in from the Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota. The B-1B flew in from Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. The B-2, the lead bomber, flew in from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. They literally met in formation over restricted airspace and then flew over the stadium – and then promptly flew back home! One really cool thing – the B-2 pilot was Captain Sarah Kociuba. She is a B-2 instructor pilot who has flown 90+ combat missions and has more than 1700 flying hours in five different aircrafts! The flyovers always bring tears to my eyes – and to my ears, they are the sound of freedom.

Our national anthem was sung by a duet for only the second time in Super Bowl’s history. Jazmine Sullivan and Eric Church – R&B and country – black and white – blended their styles and voices to sing a wonderful rendition of The Star Spangled Banner. And I fell in love with Warren “Wawa” Swipe, who was mesmerizing as he used American Sign Language to sing the anthem. Wawa is a 50-year old rapper and actor, and he is deaf. I could not take my eyes off of him! (P.S. – if you are as old as me, you might remember that the first duet to sing at the Super Bowl was the undeniable Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin and one of my favorite singers Aaron Neville.)

Woohoo – a nurse at the coin toss! Three American heroes – Suzie Dorner (ICU nurse manager at Tampa General Hospital), Trimaine Davis (a teacher from Los Angeles) and James Martin (a Marine Corps veteran) – were recognized for representing all of the brave and compassionate front line people of this pandemic. I was so excited that Ms. Dorner tossed the ceremonial coin!

It was also incredible to have these front line heroes recognized by the first ever poet to perform at a Super Bowl, Amanda Gorman. Her poem “Chorus of Champions” once again spoke directly to our hearts. “Let us walk with these warriors, charge on with these champions. And carry forth the call of our champions. We celebrate them by acting with courage and compassion, by doing what is right and just. For, while we honor them today , it is they, who every day honor us.” Indeed they do!

And women were on the football field! Two women coached in the game – Lori Locust, a defensive line assistant, and Maral Javadifar, an assistant strength and conditioning coach, both on staff for the Buccaneers. Kudos to the Buccaneers for recognizing talent and not gender! Sarah Thomas, a down judge, was the first woman to officiate in a Super Bowl! Ms. Thomas wore a little angel on her undershirt that represented a very special story about her mother. Ms. Thomas explained that “She pinned a little angel on my shirt when I was 18, a freshman in college. And she told me that she couldn’t be there with me all of the time, but she would be there in spirit and that God would be watching over me. So she found that angel and she pinned it on a note (she sent to her daughter before the game). And it just said, that they (her mom and dad) wouldn’t be there with me in person, but if I would, just wear it on my uniform. And I did, right underneath on my heart, on my little undershirt.”

Bruce Arians was the oldest head coach ever to win the Super Bowl – at the age of 68. What I loved – his 95 year old mother was in the stands cheering him on. The power of the people who support us!

The commercials were quite a mixture this year. Anything with Will Ferrell is funny. The commercial that really pulled at my heart strings was Toyota’s about Jessica Long, American Paralympic swimmer. From her adoption, to the amputation of her legs that saved her life, to her incredible spirit, the commercial really did show “the hope and strength in all of us”! And the Boss – what a poignant commercial urging us to come together as Americans, to reunite because “Our light has always found its way through the darkness, and there’s hope on the road ahead.”

Super Bowl – Super Day – super reminder about the importance of every day heroes – and a super opportunity to celebrate that which makes us Americans.

Phyl