Chula Vistan Francisco Chavez is going to the big game.
Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis will take place on Feb.4 between the AFC Champions New England Patriots and the NFC Champions Philadelphia Eagles.
With millions of people expected to watch the game on television, Chula Vista resident and Army Reservist Francisco Chavez will be one of the 66,655 people in attendance at U.S. Bank Stadium with his daughter, Laura.
Chavez,52, received the opportunity to attend the game thanks to the Los Angeles Rams and the Wounded Warrior Project, a charity and veterans service organization that offers programs, resources and help for wounded veterans of the military after Sept. 11, 2001.
During the fourth quarter of the Nov. 2 Los Angeles Rams’ Salute to Service game against the Houston Texans, the Rams surprised Chavez on-field with a video message in which Rams defensive tackle Morgan Fox told Chavez he is receiving two tickets and a trip to Super Bowl LII as part of the NFL’s Super Bowl Ticket Giveaway.
Chavez said during the moment it really did not hit him that he received two Super Bowl tickets until Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson presented him with a gigantic Super Bowl ticket.
“It was an amazing thing that I was the one chosen for this surprise,” he said.
Chavez was one of five selected by the Rams to receive the tickets.
Chavez said attending the Super Bowl is something he thought he would never get to do.
“This is something that people dream about,” he said. “It’s like one of those things that you think you’ll never go to.”
Chavez, a lifelong Chargers fan, admits he does not pay attention to the Chargers as much as he did when they were in San Diego.
However, he said, the Los Angeles Rams might overtake the Chargers as his favorite team because of the Super Bowl tickets.
“I like the Rams, of course, I have to now,” he said.
Chavez served 11 years in the United States Marine Corps, after a break from military service he joined the Army Reserves.
His military career includes two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan where he said he got into some close calls.
But it wasn’t until he returned home when sustained the most serious of injuries.
Two-years ago while working for the federal government, a box filled with hazardous materials exploded on Chavez and a coworker causing Chavez’s face to shatter and knocking out some teeth and losing part of his tongue.
“I was in Iraq and Afghanistan and had a lot of close calls with IEDs and I made it home just to get blown up at work,” he said.
The injuries coupled with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder made the long road to recovery an uphill battle, Chavez said.
The military veteran spent 30-days in an Intensive care unit. His rehab was months long as he needed multiple surgeries on his face. Chavez now has a titanium plate in his face and is set to receive new teeth very soon.
Recovering from his injuries, Chavez went through several bouts with PTSD that lead him to drinking alcohol and taking more than the required amount of prescription medicine.
He said eventually he sat around the house doing nothing and “felt like a vegetable.”
A friend had recommended that Chavez check out the Wounded Warrior Project to get him out of the house.
Since then, Chavez has been active with Wounded Warriors Project.
“I think the Wounded Warrior Project has been saving my life,” he said. “Because I was like a vegetable at home until I joined the program.”
