Francisco Gomez

Francisco Gomez grew up in Chicago with his parents, who immigrated from Mexico to give him a better life in America. His father owned a car repair shop and Francisco worked there every chance he got. He had always been fascinated with engines, how they worked, and knew he wanted to go into the mechanic field one day. After his father sold the shop, Francisco went on to get the proper certifications to work as a mechanic full-time. He and his family eventually moved from Chicago to Texas, which is where they reside now. Francisco lives with his wife and four children in San Antonio and currently works as an emergency vehicle technician, specializing in fire truck repairs. Mostly, the repairs he does are for maintenance purposes. Francisco goes out on five to six emergency repair calls a week. The vehicles he works on are really taking a beating and are in need of major repairs. In addition, because he is only one of a few technicians at his company (and in the area) that has the specialized knowledge to repair these vehicles, Francisco is finding himself living out of his car at times and driving to do repairs as far as five hours away. These days it's normal for him to work a 14-hour day and it doesn't seem like that will stop any time soon. His wife is also an essential employee who works at a food bank, so his crazy schedule, along with his wife's, has been difficult to navigate with figuring out childcare and homeschooling for their children.