FAIRFIELD, Ohio — Jim Lipscomb’s years of dedication to the Bengals are being rewarded with a trip to the Super Bowl.
Lipscomb, 86, had no idea his reaction to the AFC Championship game was being recorded.
“My life changed drastically when they won that ball game,” Lipscomb said.
Lipscomb was overwhelmed with emotion after the Bengals won the AFC Championship game against Kansas City. Now, his viral response has sparked an outpouring of support.
Lipscomb’s granddaughter, Lizzie Eschenbrenner, started a GoFundMe campaign to “Get Grandpa to the Super Bowl.” Quickly it picked up steam, and soon enough, people donated more than $42,000.
“It was not just me; it was every single person that donated,” Eschenbrenner said. “Even if it was $1, they were helping get grandpa to the Super Bowl. Now we get to send him there and he’s going to enjoy every second in Los Angeles.”
An avid Bengals fan since the team’s inception in 1968, Lipscomb has a scrapbook full of memories, and plenty of Bengals memorabilia including photos with Bengals Owner Mike Brown.
“I’ve never given up on ’em,” Lipscomb said.
Now he’s checking an item off his bucket list.
“Last Super Bowl they were in I made I promise to myself that if they ever made it back to the Super Bowl and I was still alive that I would go to it,” he said.
Thanks to the great generosity of strangers, he can.
“Just think it’s fantastic,” he said.
The funds raised will cover his ticket, airfare, hotel and a caregiver while there.
“Any of the money that we have left over we wanna donate to a charity,” Eschenbrenner said. “Probably to the one Joe Burrow partners with in Athens.”
They’re still figuring out travel plans but Lipscomb said nothing is going to stop them now.
“Even if they had to take me in a wheelchair or on a stretcher, I would end up going to the game,” he said.