Two Bears employees received prestigious awards Thursday at the team's all-staff quarterly meeting at Halas Hall.
Customer service coordinator Krista Fortman was presented with the annual Virginia Award, while director of security Pete Spizzirri won the inaugural Katie Award.
The Virginia Award is named after longtime Bears owner Virginia Halas McCaskey, who passed away Feb. 6 at the age of 102. It is given to a Bears employee who has demonstrated the characteristics and values of Mrs. McCaskey: grace, humility, loyalty and dedication. The winner also is someone who has provided exemplary service to the team, business partners and fans, and exceeded the highest standards of achievement.
Fortman, who has worked in the ticket office since being hired by the Bears in 2003, said she was shocked when she heard her name announced.
"The award is very special to me," Fortman said. "I wish Mrs. McCaskey was here so I could give her a hug and thank her for it. She set the standard for class and kindness. Every time you talked to her, she made you feel like the most special person in the room. Mrs. McCaskey was a classy lady. I'm honored to receive her award and will strive to live up to the pillars that made her so special."
Last year Fortman was responsible for presenting gifts to Bears season ticket holders of 50 years. Each season ticket holder could select a personalized game ball, jersey, leather helmet or letterman's jacket.
"I'm very passionate about our long-tenured season ticket holders," Fortman said, "so the work on our 50-year gifting program was very rewarding."
"It is so important to her to make sure they are honored and recognized," said Alissa Caulfield, who works with Fortman in the ticket office. "She would pick up the gifts and drop them off at the printer or the engraver and make sure they were honored in a really special way.
"She also helps wherever she can. She stays late if she needs to. She cares about everyone so much in the whole building. She's a really special part of our department."
The Bears created the Katie Award this year to honor Katie Nagle, a beloved longtime employee who passed away last Sept. 2 at the age of 64. Her passing sent shockwaves of sadness and grief through Halas Hall, the place that she had brightened for more than two decades.
Not surprisingly, Nagle won the first Virginia Award in 2015.
Nagle's ability to make everyone she encountered feel special was unmatched. To continue her legacy and love, the Katie Award will be presented annually to an employee who has demonstrated her kindness, gratitude, generosity and selflessness.
It was fitting that Spizzirri was presented with the first Katie Award. He adopted Nagle's 28-year-old cockatiel, Norm, following her passing after taking the bird home to care for him when she was first hospitalized last spring.
Spizzirri said he was "blown away" when he heard his name announced Thursday.
"There are so many people here that do so many nice things for people – charity, things like that – I was actually shocked," he said.
"When you think about the players and coaches and everybody that's in the history books and on the walls here, you had to be such a remarkable person for the Chicago Bears to name an honor after you. So for me being the first [to win the Katie Award], it is a tremendous honor and it comes with some responsibility to continue to carry myself in a way that makes me worthy of an award with her name on it."
In accepting the honor, Spizzirri described Katie as "the nicest person" and Norm as "the meanest bird" he's ever known.
"Norm's great," Spizzirri said later. "Still as angry as ever. Still not a friend of many, but he's happy. On a good note, instead of just eating Doritos, he now prefers Rice Chex. That's good because I actually feel like I'm giving him something that's healthier."
After the meeting, the Bears unveiled a garden just outside Halas Hall with a plaque honoring Nagle. Her sisters Margaret, Mary and Joan were on hand Thursday at Halas Hall.
"It was so touching, such an honor," Margaret said. "We're all just blown away that Katie's legacy keeps going. We didn't realize the depth of the love for her until she got sick, and then seeing this outpouring of love and an award for Katie and a garden, it's almost overwhelming."
