A US Navy veteran couldn’t forget this year’s Thanksgiving as he received something that made him collapse into the ground.
U.S. Navy veteran Oscar Rodriguez attended a special Thanksgiving screening of the new movie Red Notice, starring “The Rock” in Los Angeles. After the screening, he along with all the other audience members was then surprised by an appearance from the man himself.
During the event, Johnson pulled Rodriguez aside and handed him a handwritten note.
Rodriguez thought he won the ultimate prize: going to a special VIP screening of Dwayne Johnson’s new film “Red Notice,” and getting pulled up on stage by The Rock himself. But it only got better from there.
Thanking him for his service, praising him for giving back to his community, and bonding with him as a fellow “mamma’s boy,” Johnson stands with Rodriguez on the stage exchanging hugs … until Johnson says “I wanna show you something real quick.”
Johnson then invites Rodriguez to the parking lot where he hands him a handwritten note.
“Thank you for your service, brother,” Rodriguez read. “Enjoy your new truck …”
Rodriguez collapsed to the ground after realizing that Johnson was gifting him his beloved Ford F-150.
Johnson posted a video of the moment on Twitter where Rodriguez’s shocked response is caught on camera.
As we can see from Rodriguez’s reaction, that specific truck means a lot more to him than any Porsche ever could. He posted on Instagram after the event. “I woke up today, counted my blessings,” he said. “It’s Thanksgiving. There’s just so much to be thankful for. Just grateful that The Rock hooked me up with this whip. I’m gonna use it, baby. I’m gonna use it to encourage people and help people. And bring a lot of cheer to people. Rock, you the man.”
Yeah, the cynics out there will point out that Ford likely will be more than happy to hook Johnson up with another custom Raptor after they got so much free publicity from his gift to Rodriguez. But don’t let that diminish the generosity of the gesture and the long-term benefits a new truck offers to a veteran like Rodriguez.
“Red Notice” stars Johnson, Gal Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds; It’s playing in theaters around the country and also streaming on Netflix.
He deserves a lot more than my personal truck.
Kindness matters to me, so thanks @ORodri240 for being so kind to so many people.
You said it right, just before you drove away ~ it’s just love.
That’s all it is, brother.
Just love.Enjoy your new truck dude 🛻👊🏾
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) November 25, 2021
“He deserves a lot more than my personal truck. Kindness matters to me, so thanks @ORodri240 for being so kind to so many people. You said it right, just before you drove away ~ it’s just love. That’s all it is, brother. Just love. Enjoy your new truck dude,” he captioned the video.
When Rodriguez eventually managed to pick himself up off the floor he ran over to Johnson to give him a big hug.
“You do a lot of good for people, man,” Johnson said to an emotional Rodriguez.
Rodriguez said he was speechless and shocked by Johnson’s generous gift.
“I feel so encouraged right now, so uplifted. You’re the man, dude,” he added.
Rodriguez then called his girlfriend to give her the news and drove off to cheers from the crowd.
“His laundry list of caring credentials is pretty amazing,” Johnson said afterward.
“Just an honor for me to be able to give a little bit of joy to a dude who deserves probably a lot more than just my truck.”
Sources: Western Journal, Military.com, Up Worthy, Newsner, People