Obama invites Azle man to State of the Union address

DALLAS - A North Texas man who has an amazing life story was a guest of the White House at the State of the Union address.

Oscar Vasquez’ accomplishments were recently depicted in a Hollywood film. His parents brought him to America illegally when he was 12 years old.

Vasquez was educated here, started a family here and excelled her. But he left voluntarily after realizing he couldn’t find work because of his immigration status.

The movie starring George Lopez and Jamie Lee Curtis focuses on him being part of a low-budget high school robotics team that went up against college students, including the reigning champions from MIT, to win the entire competition.

That opportunity led to a college education and Vasquez graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from Arizona State in 2009.

Then he decided to self deport, leaving his wife and newborn, in hopes of becoming a U.S. citizen.

Vasquez’s story caught the attention of Sen. Rick Durbin, who spoke about him on the Senate floor extensively while speaking about immigration reform.

With Durbin’s help, Vasquez came back with a green card in less than a year, which is much faster than it would have taken otherwise. He then enlisted in the Army and served in Afghanistan.

He has said he wants his appearance at the State of the Union to show immigrant families that with hard work, they can achieve their dreams too.

He and his family now live in Azle and he works for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway.