Young Bills fans take part in gameday festivities through junior tailgate

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WIVB) — While the Bills rounded out their preseason on Saturday, young fans in the stands took part in an annual August tradition at Highmark Stadium: Kids Day.

The tradition gives a chance for the youngest members of Bills Mafia to get their version of the gameday experience, especially at this year’s junior tailgate.

“It’s awesome,” said Bills fan Courtney Wacalwski. “We just had our baby, she’s only nine months. It’s really cute — a lot of activities, lots of fun for the kids.”

Fisher Price helped organize the event, providing a range of activities for the little ones to do before kickoff.

“We know that there is many mafia and they start young here in Buffalo, so it’s a great way to celebrate that and bring the power of Fisher Price to the tailgate,” said Julia Maher, senior director of marketing at Fisher Price.

They could compete in games, rock climb, kick a football, play mini golf and so much more.

“I feel like sometimes you come to sporting events and it’s all adult, all adult,” said Bills fan Amanda Seeman. “It gets them to see that it’s a fun thing for them as well, that the Bills aren’t about adults, they’re about kids too.”

And these kids are on a fast track to becoming the next generation of Bills fans.

“They’re good at playing and they win a lot of games,” said Alex, a young Bills Mafia member.

Next up for the Bills is the regular season, as they’ll host the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1 on Sept. 8.

Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.