Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold proudly accepts a proclamation from Annette Kuyper of the Minnesota Department of Military Affairs recognizing the Minnesota Wild as a Yellow Ribbon Organization on Sunday, Jan. 22 at Xcel Energy Center.
Photo credit: Rick Orndorf.

MINNESOTA WILD OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED AS BEYOND THE YELLOW RIBBON ORGANIZATION

SAINT PAUL, Minn. - The Minnesota Department of Military Affairs today officially recognized that the Minnesota Wild organization has achieved Beyond the Yellow Ribbon designation during a first intermission ceremony at the Minnesota Wild-Nashville Predators game on Sunday, Jan. 22. All entities of the Wild's parent company Minnesota Sports & Entertainment are part of the designation, including the Saint Paul Arena Company, which manages Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre.

Beyond the Yellow Ribbon is a comprehensive program that establishes a Yellow Ribbon Network within a company in order to support service members, veterans and military families in the workplace. To receive official designation, companies must present an action plan that shows their commitment to recruiting and training service members and veterans as well as evidence of employee and community outreach.

"We are honored to receive this distinction and proudly support our employees who have bravely served our country and their families," said Matt Majka, chief operating officer of the Minnesota Wild. "Partnering with Beyond the Yellow Ribbon will allow us to continue giving back to Minnesota's military community in new and enriching ways."

With its new designation, the Wild will sustain its Beyond the Yellow Ribbon activities by establishing a Yellow Ribbon Steering Committee, providing quality employment opportunities, building relationships with local military groups and offering its service members and veterans access to counseling and financial planning.

The Minnesota Wild, which has long been committed to supporting and honoring military members through charitable causes, in-game presentations and more, will become the 53rd Beyond the Yellow Ribbon company in the state of Minnesota, and will join the Minnesota Vikings and Minnesota Twins as the third professional sports franchise in the state to receive the designation.

"The Minnesota Wild has shown exemplary devotion to supporting service members, veterans and military families over the course of its history," said Annette Kuyper, director of military outreach for the Minnesota Department of Military Affairs. "We congratulate the Wild on this achievement and look forward to working with them to continue improving the lives of members into the Yellow Ribbon family."

Minnesota Wild tickets for the 2016-17 regular season are on sale now at ticketmaster.com or the Xcel Energy Center Box Office. For information about Minnesota Wild Season Tickets or to join the Wild Warming House, the only way to secure priority access to future season tickets, visit tickets.wild.com or contact a Wild Ticket Sales Representative at 651-222-WILD.

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