NATIONAL CITY, Calif. (KGTV) -- An Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient was given a car Thursday as a thank you for his service.
The world sees David Beck as a loving father of five, an army veteran, and a hero.
"I'm no hero," Beck said humbly. "I'm just an ordinary guy just doing what I think is right to do."
In 2008, the "ordinary guy" enlisted in the US Army and became a combat engineer. He was the man at the very front of his troop, willing to put himself in harm's way.
"He said, 'I wanted to be the one to make sure my guys were safe,' That's the kind of leader we have today," Tom Kilgannon, President of the Freedom Alliance, said.
In Afghanistan, Beck sustained more than 40 explosions, awarding him a Purple Heart in 2013. But he also came back with invisible wounds.
"I thank my wife. I thank my kids. I love them very much," Beck said. "No matter the emotional roller coaster that we go through with what PTSD has done, they're still here, and she keeps me going."
But even after his return, they have not enjoyed vacations as a family of seven because Beck drives a small pick-up truck. That is when the Freedom Alliance partnered up with Mossy Nissan National City for a surprise gift.
"Just because the wars are over, the battle has just begun on the home front to care for our veterans," Kilgannon said.
The all-expenses-paid 2020 seven-passenger Volkswagen Tiguan can fit the whole family.
"My kids are planning. They wanted to go to Six Flags either this weekend or Big Bear, so that's actually our first trip that we are going to do as a family," Beck smiled.
Beck said this is more than a key to their new car, but a passport for new adventures.
"It's for my family. It's going to make us closer together for family bonding trips, and that's what I'm really looking forward to," Beck said.
