What is a Bell Champion®?
Our Bell Champion® program features ambassadors for Bell Bank’s financial services, and more importantly, for using our services in paying it forward to help others. These highly respected individuals champion Bell Bank’s name and services - and we love to partner with them to pay it forward to people, places and causes we may not otherwise reach.
From music stars and pro athletes to world-renowned chefs, these diverse Champions embody Bell’s values – including being a family, treating people well and making our community a better place. These individuals add to our rich company culture, performing at events, attending celebrations, mic’ing up as keynote speakers and sharing their wisdom and inspiration with employees and customers alike.
We’re grateful to these outstanding individuals. The Champion roster has never been stronger!
Champions Take: Larry Fitzgerald
Matt Cullen
3-Time Stanley Cup Winner
Moorhead, Minn., native and former NHL player Matt Cullen shares his Midwest roots with Bell. He represents Bell at community and civic events, engages in business development through professional contacts, and serves as an ambassador for Bell’s culture.
Matt won a Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, then with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017. He retired in 2019 after 2 final seasons with the Minnesota Wild and the Penguins.
Matt and his wife, Bridget, and their 3 sons now live in Moorhead, Minn. He and Bridget do extensive charitable work through their Cullen Children’s Foundation – improving the quality of life and increasing awareness for children and families dealing with cancer or life-threatening diseases. Matt’s initiative, ProjectGRACE, a part of the foundation, also reaches children more directly, funding whatever they need.
Josh Duhamel
Emmy Award-Winning Actor
Josh Duhamel is a Bell Bank Champion®, adding to his roles in acting as a brand ambassador for Bell, and partnering with us through his charitable work.
Josh has appeared in All My Children, Las Vegas, four Transformers films, The Lost Husband, Think like a Dog and more.
In spring 2020, Josh joined professional golfers Amy Olson and Tom Hoge and 3-time Stanley Cup winner Matt Cullen for the first ever Play It Forward charity golf event presented by Bell Bank. The event raised more than $267,000 for local charitable organizations. (While not yet a Champion at the first event, golfing with 3 Champions inspired Josh to join the roster soon after.)
Called one of “Hollywood’s humanitarians,” Josh has also been involved in fundraising and support for charities including the American Red Cross, Make-A-Wish, WildAid and the African Community and Conservation Foundation (ACCF).
Larry Fitzgerald Jr.
Philanthropist and Former NFL Player
Larry Fitzgerald Jr. is widely respected and recognized not only in Arizona sports, but also as a community leader, investor and philanthropist. A native of Minneapolis, Larry starred at the University of Pittsburgh and played for 17 seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, setting franchise and NFL records.
Larry established The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation with a 2-part mission to focus on youth education and breast cancer awareness. The foundation promotes reading proficiency and technology access for K-12 youth, and breast cancer awareness by aiding in research, resources and support for women, men and families impacted by breast cancer.
Our partnership event, the Larry Fitzgerald Jr. Bell Bank Golf Classic, has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in Phoenix and Minneapolis for charities that are meaningful to Larry and his family.
Marney Gellner
Sports Broadcaster and Play-by-Play Announcer
Marney Gellner is a longtime broadcaster and announcer for pro baseball and basketball games. One of very few women sports announcers when she first started her career, Marney’s knowledge and humor have made her a widely recognized face and voice in Minnesota sports.
Now described as “at home in any broadcast booth,” Marney has been with Bally (formerly FOX) Sports North since 2002, including stints in sideline reporting, pre-game and post-game analysis hosting and interviews, and play-by-play announcing for the Lynx, Timberwolves and Twins.
Marney has supported numerous local foundations, charities and fundraising events and has co-hosted the annual Twins Diamond Awards, a celebration of baseball, medical research and philanthropy.
