William Brault

William Leon Brault (February 27, 1927 – January 17, 2012) was an American businessman known for founding the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame and serving as the executive director of the Green Bay Area Visitor and Convention Bureau. A native of Two Rivers, Wisconsin, Brault served in the United States Navy during World War II before attending St. Norbert College and the Milwaukee Business College. In the early 1960s, Brault helped found the Green Bay Area Visitor and Convention Bureau; he was later named the organization's executive director, a post he would hold until 1994. During his tenure with the Bureau, Brault won numerous awards for his advocacy and work supporting tourism in Green Bay. As a way to promote tourism, Brault approached Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi with an idea to create a hall of fame recognizing the past players, coaches and contributors to the Packers organization. Founded in 1966, the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame became the first hall of fame to honor a single professional American football team. Brault served in leadership positions within the hall of fame organization and helped expand it over the next 38 years. He was elected to the Packers Hall of Fame in 1995 in recognition of his contributions to the team.

Early life William Brault was born on February 27, 1927, in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. In 1939, the Brault family moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin. After graduation, Brault began service in the United States Navy during World War II; he was educated and trained at the Great Lakes Naval Academy before serving in the Pacific Theater in the Naval Air Transport service. He was honorably discharged from the Navy after World War II ended.

Career

Business After moving to Green Bay, the Brault family opened a restaurant, Brault's Cafe, on Main Street. Brault began his career working with his father at the restaurant. The Cafe expanded to include another location and a catering business. In the 1950s, the restaurant closed and the business focused its efforts on just catering. As a kid, Brault travelled across the country with his father's band, the Art Brault's Canadians. Brault was named the bureau's first president, a role he would serve in until 1994. However, one supervisor became unhappy with how the Bureau was being managed and made charges regarding a lack of financial accountability, advocating for the Bureau to release all of their financial statements. The disagreement centered on the contract between the County and the Bureau, and whether the contract required just summarized financial statements or all receipts. Brault countered that the County brought on the Bureau to manage the Arena as a company, not as a government entity, and that releasing all receipts would be a breach of privacy and contract with individual entertainers and would open up more government intrusion in the management of the Bureau and the Arena. The hall of fame became a massive tourism draw for the city and region, with visitor counts typically exceeding those of the larger Pro Football Hall of Fame. In 1995, Brault was inducted into the hall of fame he helped found.

Personal life Brault married Carol on July 22, 1950; the couple had four children. Brault was active in his local community; he served on the St. Norbert College's Parent's Club and was a member of the American Legion. Although noted as someone who worked within the tourism and entertainment industry, many of Brault's pastimes were activities that did not involve going out, such as swimming, fishing, woodworking and cross-country skiing. Brault died on January 17, 2012, at the age of 84.