I have always been a Packers fan. Well, since about 1968 anyway, when I first learned what a football was.

I will die a Packers fan. In fact, I have a Green Bay Packers tattoo on my right arm. It’s my only tattoo. You have to admit, putting a tattoo on your arm is a pretty solid commitment. I only hope it’s still there when I eventually move on to whatever comes next.

People often ask how a kid from Illinois ended up becoming a Cheesehead. The answer is simple. Because of medical issues, I couldn’t play football as a youngster, so I read about football instead.

And in the 1960s, nobody was more interesting to read about than the Green Bay Packers.

The Packers owned the decade. Vince Lombardi, Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Ray Nitschke, Willie Davis, and Jim Taylor were larger than life. I collected their football cards and devoured every article I could find. Somewhere along the way, I became a Packers fan for life.

I mention all this because another NFL season is upon us.

At this moment every team is undefeated and every fan believes this could be the year. Well, almost every fan. The Bears are still the Bears, but that’s a column for another day.

What has always fascinated me about the Packers isn’t just the championships. It’s the story.

The Green Bay Packers were founded in 1919 when a 21-year-old shipping clerk named Earl “Curly” Lambeau convinced his employer, the Indian Packing Company, to contribute $500 for uniforms and equipment. In return, the company asked only one thing: name the team after the packing company. More than a century later, the Packers still carry that name. And in the unlikely event they ever sell the team, the owners don’t get a billion-dollar payday. The money goes to charity. Somewhere, Jerry Jones just fainted.

Curly became much more than the founder. He was the player, coach, recruiter, promoter, and public face of the franchise. In those early years, he did whatever was necessary to keep the team alive.

And keeping it alive wasn’t easy.

The Packers nearly folded several times. Local businessmen and ordinary citizens repeatedly stepped forward to save the franchise. That’s why Green Bay remains unique today. The team isn’t owned by a billionaire. It is owned by the community. In many ways, the Packers belong to the people who love them.

Green Bay is also the smallest market in professional sports, with a population of roughly 100,000 people. Yet the franchise has become one of the most successful in American sports history. The Packers have won 13 NFL championships, more than any other franchise, and remain the only team to win three consecutive league titles twice.

Under Lambeau, Green Bay won six NFL championships. He was also one of football’s great innovators. While much of the league was still pounding the ball on the ground, Lambeau embraced the forward pass. His star receiver, Don Hutson, helped revolutionize the game and became one of the greatest players of his era.

Here’s a little tidbit for Bears fans who have managed to read this far.

Despite one of the fiercest rivalries in sports, George Halas and Curly Lambeau shared a mutual respect. In fact, the Packers once loaned Halas money so he could meet the Bears’ payroll. Years later, Halas returned the favor by supporting Green Bay’s efforts to build the stadium that would eventually become Lambeau Field.

Sadly, Lambeau’s relationship with the organization ended on a bitter note. He resigned in 1950 after a power struggle with the board of directors. Yet when the Packers later renamed their stadium, they chose to honor the man who built the franchise.

Today, Lambeau Field remains one of the most iconic venues in sports. There is even a larger-than-life statue of Curly outside the stadium, forever standing watch over the team he founded.

Of course, no discussion of Packers history would be complete without Vince Lombardi.

When Lombardi arrived in Green Bay in 1959, the Packers were coming off a dreadful 1-10-1 season. Within three years they were champions. During his nine seasons in Green Bay, Lombardi won five NFL championships and the first two Super Bowls. His impact was so profound that the Super Bowl trophy now bears his name.

Then came Brett Favre.

When Favre arrived from Atlanta in 1992, the Bears held a commanding lead in the all-time rivalry. Between Favre and Aaron Rodgers, the Packers erased that deficit and turned the rivalry around. They lead now by 12 games.

Favre remains my favorite player. Rodgers may be one of the most talented quarterbacks ever to play the game, although he has also proven that talent and drama often travel together.

And then there’s the Lambeau Leap.

Today it seems every team has some version of it, but the tradition began in 1993 when Packers safety LeRoy Butler scored and spontaneously jumped into the crowd. Fans loved it. A tradition was born.

So here we are again. Another season. Another reason for hope.

The experts have the Packers among the contenders this year. Whether they make it to the Super Bowl remains to be seen.

I’ve followed the Packers for nearly sixty years. I’ve celebrated championships, suffered through bad seasons, defended Brett Favre, argued about Aaron Rodgers, and even put their logo permanently on my arm.

At my age, I know there are only so many opening days left. That’s one reason I enjoy them a little more each year.

So here’s to another season, another reason to hope, and another opportunity for Bears fans to explain what went wrong.

Go Pack Go.