2 Hondo families shocked to see themselves in Super Bowl ad

Members of two Hondo farming families — Kenneth Bendele (from left), Ella Britsch, Brad Bendele and Eric Bendele — were in a Ram Super Bowl commercial. “I didn’t know we were even going to be on TV,” Eric said. less Members of two Hondo farming families — Kenneth Bendele (from left), Ella Britsch, Brad Bendele and Eric Bendele — were in a Ram Super Bowl commercial. “I didn’t know we were even going to be on TV,” ... more Photo: Edward A. Ornelas, San Antonio Express-News Photo: Edward A. Ornelas, San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 6 Caption Close 2 Hondo families shocked to see themselves in Super Bowl ad 1 / 6 Back to Gallery

Members of two farming families in Hondo got the surprise of their lives when they suddenly saw their faces pop up in a moving Super Bowl commercial.

The next day, the feeling of disbelief deepened, as the three generations of Texans saw their pictures from the Ram Truck “God Loves a Farmer” spot on morning TV shows and YouTube and in a full-page photo in USA Today.

They began to realize that, along with Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco and pop sensation Beyoncé, they had become stars of Super Bowl Sunday.

“It was so exciting,” Eric Bendele, whose image appeared twice in the tribute to farmers that was voiced by radio legend Paul Harvey, said by phone Monday.

Fohn Bendele, Eric's brother and owner of Grassfield Farm in Hondo, said it all started with a call asking if a photographer could come and take pictures. “They found me on the Internet,” he said.

When he saw the new Ram truck pull up, Fohn realized that it must be for an ad — for print maybe. “We were pretty much left in the dark,” he said.

“I didn't know we were even going to be on TV,” Eric said. “First, I saw my dad (Kenneth) in one of the pictures. Then, there was me hauling hay from the back of the truck and, toward the end, there were the close-ups of me and my nephew. Suddenly, all these text messages started coming in from friends and family who also were watching.”

And Fohn's 9-year-old son, Brad, whose soulful visage was seen in a memorable shot toward the end of the commercial? He went to school Monday, his father said, “on cloud nine.”

At another Hondo home, that of vegetable farmer Bryce Britsch, his 8-year-old daughter Ella also was stunned to see her picture pop up onscreen. “All she said,” her dad recalled, “was 'Oh my gosh.' ”

Britsch said he got a call from someone wanting to shoot in a spinach field. The rest is Super Bowl history.

After school Monday, Ella had more to say. “I'm so excited,” she said by phone. “After I saw it, my mom and dad hugged me, and I said, 'Dad, will you put me on your shoulders?' He picked me up and carried me around the room.”

At Meyer Elementary, where Ella is in the second grade, she felt like a celebrity. “Everyone came up and said, 'Congratulations' and 'I'm so happy for you,'” she said.

The families did get paid but wouldn't discuss details other than to say they had no idea the pictures would be used in a TV ad.

In another local connection, the photographer who shot the Bendeles and Britsches, Andy Mahr, lives in Helotes. He was one of 10 photographers for the ad.

“It was a terrific honor to be part of not only a Super Bowl commercial, but more importantly the message behind it: a beautiful homage to the American farmer,” Mahr said by phone.

Making all this even more meaningful, Fohn added, was the beloved voice that graced the ad. “We're all fans of Paul Harvey,” Fohn said, adding the whole family listened to him for years on San Antonio's KKYX Radio.

Harvey died in 2009 at age 90.

“We felt fortunate that we were one of the lucky farms across the country chosen for the ad,” Fohn said, adding he felt “it was a gift from heaven” for his late grandfather. “Paul Harvey was his favorite.”

Switching gears to the lighter side of Super Bowl Sunday, another of the night's most talked-about ads also featured a Texan. Jesse Heiman, a graduate of Texas State University, is the geeky guy who got to lock lips with supermodel Bar Refaeli for GoDaddy.com.

The 34-year-old actor grew up in Austin, got his degree in San Marcos and, up to now, had scored mainly extra parts in television shows. But overnight, he was a hot property.

According to an interview with Heiman in the Huffington Post, his agent's phone “is ringing off the hook,” he said.

And sure enough, Brianna Barcus of Clear Talent Group wrote in an email that Heiman likely wouldn't have time to speak to the San Antonio Express-News because “his schedule is jam-packed, as you would imagine.”

jjakle@express-news.net