Virginia McCaskey, the Bears’ 97-year-old matriarch, won’t let the coronavirus stop her from watching games in person.
She will travel to attend Sunday’s season opener in Detroit, her son, Bears chairman George McCaskey said Thursday.
“That does not surprise me at all,” Bears coach Matt Nagy said.
George McCaskey spoke to the Lions’ security chief on Wednesday to ensure that she would be able to keep a safe distance from others while inside Ford Field. She will skip her annual conversation with 94-year-old Martha Firestone Ford, the former Lions chair.
“Well to say that, she’s always eager to start the season,” George McCaskey said. “But to say that she’s especially eager this season is an understatement. I talked to her a couple of weeks ago and said, ‘So I take it you will do whatever is required of you to attend the games?’ And she paused and said ‘Yes’. In that tone, I think you have heard yourself. Leaving no doubt about where she stands.”
“The Lions are great about welcoming people at Ford Field,” George McCaskey said. “There are a lot of people being very gregarious and saying how happy they are that you’re there. They’re especially happy to see her because they see her year after year. We told them we understand that you want to be friendly and welcoming but we want to take every precaution. He said, ‘I understand completely. I already have spoken to my staff. We get it.’
“We just want to have as safe an environment as possible. Mrs. Ford and my mom are very good friends. They’re not going to be able to have their usual pregame visit. Which I’m sure is going to be very disappointing to both of them. It’s great to see both of them get back together. But the Lions and the Fords and everybody want to be as cautious as possible.”
Virginia McCaskey plans to attend home games, too. Her son said that she has resumed a regular routine: daily morning mass and three-times-per-week light workouts.
George McCaskey has been careful to stay safe during the pandemic. When he walked into Halas Hall on Thursday, it marked only the second time he’d done so since mid-March. In fact, he said he’s never met new quarterback Nick Foles, whom the Bears agreed to trade for in March, in person.
