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Looking back at his life, you can see how much pride Stockton icon Alex Spanos had in where he came from and his upbringing.
From humble beginnings selling bologna sandwiches to farm workers throughout the Central Valley in the 1950s, to becoming a billionaire and the owner of an NFL team, Spanos truly lived the American dream.
He was the son of Greek immigrants and started working in his father's bakery in Stockton when he was just 8-years-old. His work ethic and fearlessness paid off in a major way when Spanos took the $35,000 he had saved from his catering company and invested in land.
From there, his construction and real estate empire was built. By the mid-1970s his company, A.G. Spanos Construction, was one of the biggest apartment builders in the country. But there was a different dream under construction for Spanos.
In 1984, he purchased the San Diego Chargers and joined the NFL family. And now, as the owner of the Chargers, it was time for Spanos to build something new: A winning football team. After years of six-win seasons, the Chargers finally had their shot at a Super Bowl Championship in 1995. The Stockton businessman finally saw another dream become a reality when the Chargers met the San Francisco 49ers for Super Bowl XXIX in their only Super Bowl appearance to date.
Spanos relinquished the day-to-day management responsibilities of the Chargers to his son, Dean, before the team's Super Bowl season. In 2017, Dean moved the team from San Diego to Los Angeles.
The only thing bigger than football was family for the late Alex Spanos. He and his late wife, Faye, were married for nearly 70 years. They had four children together along with dozens of grandchildren and great grandchildren. The family's investment in the community can be seen from Stockton to San Diego as the Spanos legacy of philanthropy lives on.
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