Members of 2 Hondo families star in commercial

Super Bowl Dodge commercial features Paul Harvey speech

The little town of Hondo has now made the big time, thanks to the popular Super Bowl TV commercial for Dodge trucks that featured members of two families.

The commercial featured images of farmers taken from all over the country superimposed over an audio clip of legendary radio broadcaster Paul Harvey delivering his speech titled "So God Made A Farmer," from the 1978 Future Farmers of America convention.

One of those pictures was of Hondo's Bendele family, whom the photographer found through the internet.

They own the Grassfield Farm. 

John Bendele, who ended up not being in the commercial, had to convince his dad, brother and son to do the photo shoot. 

A good thing, he said, as all three were featured in the ad. 

Kenneth, the eldest, wasn't sure at first.

"I really wasn't going to go through with that, to tell you the truth. I though, 'This is for nothing,' (but it) ended up being very rewarding," said Bendele.

The elder Bendele was prominently featured at the beginning of the ad.

Eric Bendele appears in the commercial twice, tossing a bail of hay from the bed of a pickup, and then in a close-up towards the end.

"I didn't even realize we were going to be a part of it. We were just enjoying the game. It was a total surprise to us," said Eric.

Keeping it in the family, a close-up shot of Eric dissolves into a close-up of his nephew, Brad, who is holding his hat over his heart.

"I was really surprised," said Brad, who is now very popular at his elementary school.

He is not the only popular one at Meyer Elementary, though. 

Ella Britsch, 9, was also a part of the commercial, standing in front of one of her dad's fields with crossed arms. She was also shocked to see her photo show up.

"I was really surprised and then my mom and dad started hugging me and stuff," said Ella.

Surprised, humbled, and proud.

"It was a real honor, especially to be a part of Paul Harvey reading a speech about God," Eric Bendele. "It was just an honor."


About the Author:

David Sears, a native San Antonian, has been at KSAT for more than 20 years.