Local Bills Backers group a ‘wonderful addition to our town’

Buffalo Bills fans are no strangers to stress.

Depending on their age, many are still recovering from four consecutive Super Bowl losses in the early 1990s.

This is the fifth season in a row that the Bills have finished atop the AFC East standings, but defeat has been common with the Bills having been absent from the championship game since the final Super Bowl loss to the Dallas Cowboys in 1993.

Is this year going to be different?

About 2,000 members of the Fort Erie Bills Backers group hope so, especially dozens who came out Saturday to South Coast Cookhouse to mingle with fellow fans.

Carrie McNeill said in a way she was relaxed on Saturday, knowing that Sunday’s game against divisional rivals the New England Patriots was basically meaningless, that there were no real implications, and the Bills were expected to start mostly second-string players.

The gathering was also before it was known that the Bills will welcome the Denver Broncos next weekend for the first round of playoffs.

“That’s when you get nervous because every game means something and you can’t lose,” said McNeill, president of the local Bills chapter, one of more than 600 officially registered with the NFL team.

Each chapter must be associated with a licensed establishment, and Fort Erie’s is linked to South Coast Cookhouse.

“We’re pretty proud that we’re on there,” said McNeill about being recognized by the Bills, sitting next to her husband Keith who is a Miami Dolphins fan.

He was sitting amongst about 30 Bills fans Saturday and very quickly lifted his sweatshirt to show Fort Erie Radio a Dolphins T-shirt he was hiding underneath.

Keith is a big supporter and steers the Backers’ float in the Santa Claus Parade.

But the local Backers chapter does more than just share a love of a football team.

In the two years of its existence, the group has raised more than $8,000 for Community Outreach Program Erie (COPE), through selling squares on game day. They also support needy families behind the scenes.

They collected a few hundred dollars for the Bills Backers group based out of Asheville, North Carolina, to assist with efforts related to Hurricane Helene.

A donation was also made to a foundation started by Tua Tagovailoa when the Miami Dolphins quarterback was sidelined earlier this season with a concussion he suffered against the Bills.

“We do our best to help out,” said McNeill.

Cheryl and Jim Laur are proud to be active with the Fort Erie Bills Backers chapter.

“This has been a wonderful addition to our town as far as fundraising,” she said.

The Backers held a golf tournament last year and another is planned for 2025.

Jim said growing up in town, it’s hard to not be a Bills fan.

“For us in Fort Erie, it’s our local team,” he said.

“It’s a common interest,” he added.

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