ST. CLOUD -- Dozens of St. Cloud metro area residents are heading to Minneapolis in February to help out at Super Bowl 52.

After sifting through 30,000 applications, doing 15,000 interviews they picked 10,000 people, 74 of them from the St. Cloud Metro.

Diane Hageman is one of the volunteers selected for the big game. She says, while 90% of them came from Minnesota, the remaining 10% come from all over.

"Forty-two states and about a half dozen countries, I took some notes, Canada, France, Puerto Rico [to name a few]."

Hageman says they looked for volunteers that could demonstrate our state's hospitality.

"They want [for qualities] hospitality, welcoming, and I'm really about telling good stories, and making people feel welcome in my town and state."

To that end she says, they're focusing the volunteers on high profile places both in downtown Minneapolis and in its suburbs.

"The Mall of America, hotels, skyways and the airport. Really it's about being ambassadors and showcasing the state of Minnesota."

Within the first hour of opening up the application process, they had 1,000 applicants, that went up to 7,000 within 24 hours.

The volunteers range from the ages of 18-91. Sixty-percent are women, and 40% are men. The breakdown of how many are coming from the St. Cloud metro area looks like:

  • Sartell - 11
  • Sauk Rapids - 9
  • St. Cloud - 45
  • Waite Park - 5
  • St. Joseph - 4

Later this month they'll learn about the exact roles they can fill for the big game's festivities. In December, the volunteers will be able to sign up for shifts, and in January, they'll officially start training for the festivities, and get their uniforms.

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