Oneida Nation Walk of Legends™, Green Bay, Wis.

March 6, 2008

Now, Lombardi and other Green Bay Packers greats, along with a complete team history, are in the process of being immortalized on black granite monuments within shouting distance of “the frozen tundra” of this city’s Lambeau Field.
Put together as a labor of love by a local woman and her daughter – both huge Packers fans – with financial backing by a group that figured in the community’s earliest football teams, the Oneida Nation Walk of Legends™ should provide fans an historic overview of their favorites for decades, even centuries, to come.

A MAJOR UNDERTAKING
As a mother-daughter project, the Oneida Nation Walk of Legends goes way beyond making new curtains or painting the kitchen. Sandi Campbell and her daughter, Corrie, bring unique skill sets to such a major undertaking.
Sandi Campbell, a longtime supporter of the arts in northeastern Wisconsin, as well as the owner of Green Bay-based Aspire L.L.C., came up with the idea in 2004. Initially, she thought of doing a sidewalk-of-fame installation similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame™, before learning that concept is trademarked.
“We researched a bit and thought about doing a Walk of Legends,” she says. “It’s my concept, but Corrie has pretty much done everything else with it.”
Corrie Campbell, who has a background in the arts and is the owner of C. McLain Campbell Art and Design, also in Green Bay, has been the driving force behind the design that will ultimately result in 24 granite monuments honoring the team and selected hometown heroes. However, she says both of the Campbells have worked closely together on just about all aspects of the project.
One of their first actions was to request the renaming of three streets for famous Packers in the area east of Lambeau Field, which already sits on Lombardi Avenue, which honors the legendary football coach.
“We now have Bart Starr Drive, Reggie White Way and Tony Canadeo Run and, of course, Bart Starr will be on Bart Starr Drive,” says Sandi Campbell. “That will come in 2008.”
The National Football League team has aimed at making the entire area around Lambeau Field a year-round destination since extensive remodeling of the stadium in 2006. Sandi Campbell says the area encompassing the Walk of Legends is about 1.25 miles in circumference, and is a mix of commercial and public spaces.
The project received a big boost when the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin chose to sponsor the entire walk, adding its name to it in the process.
“At first, we thought we’d need quite a few sponsors for so large a project,” says Sandi Campbell. “Then, we met with the Oneida Nation people, and they loved the idea. They came on board to sponsor every monument.”
Michael Overman, marketing director for the Oneida’s Green Bay-based gaming operations, says he was initially approached by the Campbells about a sponsorship.
“They came in and showed me their vision for this, and both from a tribal member standpoint, and from a marketing standpoint, I saw value in using this to educate the population about Native Americans and the Oneida culture.”
Overman says he also likes the durability of the monuments.
“I can’t think of any advertising, outside of something for free, that would be less expensive when you break it down by the amount of impressions we’ll get off the monuments over the next 500 years,” he says.
Overman then took the idea to Bobbie Webster, the Oneida’s communications director, who agreed to jointly fund the project with the Oneida Bingo and Casino.
“The fact that it would be located in a very high-profile neighborhood that’s growing and becoming a widely known tourist area made it attractive,” she says. “Plus, the proposal included the opportunity to create a tribute and a lasting piece on the Oneida nation.”

MODERN…AND TRADITIONAL
Even as the two women were seeking sponsors for the Walk of Legends, Corrie Campbell developed a prototype, which the Campbells call the Victory Monument
“We wanted to make sure that everything was structurally okay and that we could implement the right design,” she says.. “I haven’t had to touch it since it was completed; the black granite is great and a very durable surface.”
Corrie Campbell explains that when she began to think about a design for the monuments, she wanted something simple and bold.
“I see a lot of modern influence in them,” she says. “I wanted them to be very striking. They’re punctuating a walkway and they’re part of the landscape. At the same time, Green Bay is a little traditional in its architectural choices.”
As for the use of the black granite, it’s almost a given for incorporating both text and photos. And, durability was also a consideration given the area’s harsh winters.
The overall design of the monuments and the football content has been entirely in the hands of the two Campbells, with Corrie Campbell doing a great deal of the legwork, as well as creating the designs.
“There will be a total of 12 monuments to individual players, and then one to Vince Lombardi,” says Sandi Campbell. “We couldn’t miss him. Then, the others will have the complete history of Green Bay football from 1895 to the present.”
Corrie Campbell says it takes between one and two months just to decide what should go on one of the individual monuments.
“We’re working with the players, or their families and estates,” she says. “We have to have some good images to work from for the portraits. There’s a whole process involved in having the families decide what they do or don’t like.”
At this point, she has a template to work from, and says once there’s been that initial contact – and the appropriate permissions and approvals have been received – it takes about two months.
The monuments documenting the team’s history haven’t been quite as challenging.
“I’ve studied the team history for a long time,” she says. “I’ve had that material for awhile now and pretty much knew what was going to be on each monument because of the historical background I have.”
It’s there that the Packers and the Oneida peoples first cross paths, too. The first monument to the team’s history covers the period from the birth of pro football in Green Bay in 1895 up through World War I. Many of the early players were Oneidas.
“Many people weren’t aware of that,” says Sandi Campbell. “Now, they are, and it’s something the Oneidas are very proud of.”
“Green Bay football history began with some Oneida men,” that nation’s Webster agrees. “That’s why this seemed like a great partnership to us.”
As part of the Oneida’s sponsorship of the Walk of Legends, the nation has the opportunity to create its own tribute to its heritage on the reverse side of the monuments. Webster is in charge of that part of the project, and as with Corrie Campbell, has created her own template for referencing the Oneida Nation on each stone.
“We’re using material we use to promote and educate the public about the Oneida Nation,” she says. “Some of it is based on oral traditions that have now been recorded and some is an overview of the tribe, including our history, our government and our philosophies.”

FROM GIGABYTES TO GRANITE
Taking both sets of artwork and making it a reality is the task of Stanstead, Que.-based Picture This on Granite. Corrie Campbell explains that she spoke with a number of different companies that engrave on stone before choosing the firm.
“They were the most-compatible with us,” she says. “They have a very high standard of excellence, which we do as well. They also have the same commitment to this project as we do, and that’s what we need to accomplish what we’re doing by the end of 2009.”
She adds that Joe Ford, Picture This on Granite’s art director, has been a big help in developing the artwork for the monuments, simply because preparing material for engraving on stone isn’t like any work she had done previously.
“Engraving is entirely different from doing art pieces,” Corrie Campbell says. “The portraits have to be done in such a way that they contrast properly for the granite and the software programs Joe uses. He’s been able to transfer and implement my designs perfectly.”
Ford explains that he receives an electronic file with a version of each monument laid out the way the Campbells want it. At the same time, the photography to be included is received by mail.
“Then, I prepare the layout with the photographs and the text,” he says. “I also follow what fonts they want. Then, I do a full-size proof which I send off as a .jpg file to Corrie to approve. Once that’s done, we put it on our machine.”
It’s not uncommon to have to do a little tweaking with the layouts, Ford adds, but approval generally takes only a couple days.
Because of the schedule the Campbells are working with, there have also been some time constraints. Ford says before the first five monuments were installed and dedicated in September 2007, he was working seven days a week. More recently, Picture This on Granite had eight days to complete the work on two more monuments dedicated at the end of December.
“We’ve had some pretty tight deadlines,” he says.
A bigger problem, everyone agrees, has been getting black granite to do the work. Corrie Campbell says the project was designed to use black granite from China, but demand for the stone in that country made it scarce. Some of the monuments use granite from India instead.
“We’ve had some problems with the Indian granites being filled,” she says. “Obviously, because we’re working with panels, we don’t want to have variances from one panel to another. The last pieces we used were all cut from the same block.”
Assisting with the selection and handling of the granite is Green Bay-based Wisconsin Marble and Granite. Owner Randy Lardinois says that, as with the Campbells, he’s a Green Bay native and thrilled to be a part of the project.
“It’s in our own backyard,” he says. “It’s a great opportunity to get involved and learn something different.”
Lardinois says more typically his shop fabricates and installs countertops, vanities and fireplaces. For the monuments, his tasks have been more varied, from receiving the 3/4” slabs, cutting them to the proper 4’ X 8’ size, polishing the edges, and then crating and shipping them to Picture This on Granite.

SOLID FOUNDATION
Once the engraving work is done, Picture This on Granite ships the finished pieces back to Lardinois for installation. Ford stresses that each monument is really four pieces of granite, with the sides being slightly smaller than the faces.
Lardinois says installation is a cooperative effort between his shop and those of Oconto Falls, Wis.-based Great Lakes Masonry Inc. and De Pere, Wis.-based Robinson Metal.
Great Lakes Masonry is responsible for pouring the footers for each monument and forming the column for the granite; Robinson Metal is producing 12-gauge brushed stainless-steel finials to cap each monument. Those for individuals feature the player’s uniform number, while the others are topped with a football.
“I believe they were approached with the project, as I was,” says Lardinois. “Our relationships are outstanding. We work hand-in-hand on these.”
To stay ahead of Green Bay’s extreme winter weather, Sandi Campbell says the ground has already been broken for 13 of the monuments. Her daughter explains that the footers vary from 5’-6’ deep and 4’-5’ square depending on the overall height of the piece with its finial.
“We’re also using a special concrete mix that allows for changes or extremes in weather,” says Corrie Campbell.
Weather is certainly a concern with Lardinois’ installations, he says. As with the concrete, he’s using a special cold-weather compound to adhere the stone to the concrete, and the work is done in a heated enclosure.
“Any time it’s below 50°F, we heat it to get some warmth into it and to get it to stop sweating,” he says. “Once the stone’s in there, there’s a base that we put in first and then give it a day or two to set-up. At that point, we install the panels.”
For the two monuments that were unveiled at the end of December, Lardinois says he took a 100-lbs. tank of propane and heated each enclosure until the tank was empty, then let the monument return to ambient temperature.
“A couple days after that, we install the cap,” he says. “It really takes less than a week. The biggest thing with the installation is the weather, and we’ve gotten the bugs worked out with that.”
Everyone involved with the project is very satisfied with it, although for varying reasons. For instance, Lardinois says it’s been a boost to his business.
“The minute we mention anything about the monuments, people go, ‘Oh, you’re doing that,’” he says. “It’s nice recognition, and people now think we don’t just do countertops. We do a lot more, and this helps a lot.”
Picture This on Granite’s Ford even uses the word “satisfying.”
“There have been some big pushes to meet deadlines, so we’ve had to really push hard,” Ford says. “There have been a lot of hours and a lot of hard work, but it’s gone very well and it’s been very satisfying.”
While there’s still another two years worth of work ahead, the Campbells are pleased to see their vision take shape. For instance, Corrie Campbell says it’s expanded her experience as an artist.
“I’m enjoying working a lot with the element of granite, now that I’ve gained experience,” she says. “It’s a real art form to be able to use granite as a portrait background – a very unique process – and I love it.”
Then, there’s also the gratification of doing such a project for a community and a team they love.
“People love it,” says Sandi Campbell. “We’d drive around before games and see people taking pictures in front of them. The fans are what Green Bay is about; this is quite the thing.”
The Oneidas’ Webster would agree, although not entirely for the same reasons. She admits some members of the nation have been upset with the sponsorship because of the length of the project and the large sum involved.
“But, I’m pretty confident about this partnership,” Webster says. “The Green Bay Packers are synonymous not just with football, but with pride and tradition. That’s what the monuments are about. The Oneida Nation also has a long, proud history. We wanted our name associated with something that would provide a lasting legacy to speak to pride, to valor, to strong bodies and healthy minds.”

Clients: Aspire L.L.C., Green Bay, Wis.; Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, Oneida, Wis.; Oneida Bingo and Casino, Green Bay, Wis.
Designer: C. McLain Campbell Art and Design, Green Bay, Wis.
Engraver: Picture This on Granite, Stanstead, Que.
Fabricator/Installer: Wisconsin Marble and Granite, Green Bay, Wis.