A cash-strapped Packers fan needed a way to pay for his season tickets, and with 11 kids (hey now) he couldn’t take it out of the family budget. So he decided to sell his blood. And oddly enough, it saved his Packer-loving life.

“Jim Becker, now 79, along with his wife, Patricia, raised 11 children (all Packers fans). Needless to say, money was tight, but Jim had season tickets to pay for, but he wouldn’t take money away from the family. So he found out he could sell his blood for $15 a pint. The Packers saved his life.

During a routine physical, he had to fill out a questionnaire about family medical history. The doctor noticed Jim’s father died at 43 years old of hemochromatosis. Jim had to be tested. He had it. It is a condition that retains excessive amounts of iron in your blood. The only treatment is to remove the iron by giving blood. By then he had sold 145 pints of blood to pay for his season tickets. If he hadn’t, he very well may have died like his father. His love of the Packers saved his life. To this day he still donates 3-4 times a month.”

For his efforts Becker was enshrined in the Packers fans Hall of Fame. He also won a bunch of Packers tickets and swag. That’s a pretty awesome story. I doubt we will find Jim’s picture in the Crazy Packers Fan Hall of Fame. That’s a whole different kind of Hall. From a life-long Bears fan to a Packers fan, I doff my cap to you, Mr. Jim Becker.