Name: R. Silver Becerra

Age: 41

Self Definition: Patriot

Where were you at 9 a.m. last Sunday morning?

I was watching the CBS Sunday Morning Show with Charles Osgood – a good way to start the end of a weekend.

What person has influenced you more than any other, and how?

My maternal grandmother, a.k.a. “the Kid.” The strongest and most beautiful person I probably will ever know. How? She comes from a Spanish culture, was raised in Mexico and lived mostly alone in Texas with her five children. Her perseverance astonished me!

When don’t you feel equal?

It would have to be when I walk into a sports bar or restaurant/pub and all the TVs have male sports on, and it’s a huge hassle having the channel changed to watch a WNBA or a women’s tennis match. It sucks.

Where were you last Wednesday at noon?

Working hard in the photo lab

When was the last time you felt proud? When I was asked to be one of the artists to display work at the new casualty care center for amputees and Acquired Brain Injury/Traumatic Brain Injury military personnel

If there was a defining moment in your life, what was it?

I’ve had a few defining moments in my life that have molded me into the person I’ve become and am still becoming. I’ve literally had two to three close encounters with death, but a recent “defining moment” would have to be the day “the Kid” and I nearly died on the very same day from an acquired brain injury while in two different locations in this world. Adjusting to this new me and a new way of life has inspired me to advocate passionately for those fellow sailors, soldiers, marines and others who will be coming home and struggling to move along and survive the long journey that awaits them.

Where were you at 10 p.m. last Friday night? At home nursing a head cold

What is your most immediate goal?

Volunteering at the 7th annual Wine and Art Fundraiser for the San Diego Brain Injury Foundation and completing my third college degree

When do you feel total joy?

An hour before sunset