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The values of education and hard work are central in the life of legal studies major Tony Mekari, qualities that helped him earn the Jonathan and Judy Hoff Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year and first-team Pac-12 All-Academic honors. Together, they are also helping Mekari and his family live the American dream.
 
Mekari is the oldest of three first-generation American-born brothers from Armenian and Lebanese families that immigrated to the United States in the late 1970s.
 
His mother's side of the family, which fled Iran during the country's revolution, has been steeped deeply in education long before arriving in the United States.
 
His father, Tony Sr., has a similar view on education but took an entirely different path to reach it. Tony Sr. was eight years old and living in Lebanon when his father, Sayed, died from a brain tumor. Shortly after, Tony Sr., his mother and four siblings left during the country's civil war and arrived as immigrants in Foster City.
 
"Since there was no father figure and they were very poor, they all had to work." Tony said. "My dad's mother constantly had three jobs. As kids, we were told stories about their hardships. My grandma came to the United States with $180 in her pocket."
 
But despite having to flee their respective home countries, both families had opportunities in the United States, and their work ethic and belief in education helped to ensure future success.
 
Tony's father started with jobs at gas stations, car washes and hotels, but now runs a successful construction and remodeling business in the San Fernando Valley. Tony's mother, Carol, who has a master's degree from Cal State Northridge, manages the business.
 
"My dad is very grateful for his company and all the success he has had, but he also sees that he could have had it a little better if he had academics," Tony said. "He completely praises the importance of getting an education and taking a different path than the one he took, as long as we have a similar character and work ethic."
 
Tony Sr. took Tony and his brother, Patrick, also a member of the football team at Cal, on a few of his work trips during their high school days to help them gain an appreciation for education, but Tony says that was something he started to form long before those excursions.
 
"When we were in middle school, we always said our goal was to get a full scholarship to a good academic institution," Tony said. "We were dreaming and fantasizing back then, but we always said the No. 1 school would be Cal. It's cool that it actually happened."
 
Tony remembers fondly when it became a reality.
 
"Patrick and my dad came with me on my unofficial visit right before signing day," said Tony, who will be a senior nose guard in the fall. "We sat in an academic meeting, and they were stunned by the intensity of it."
 
But it didn't faze Tony.
 
"I loved it," Tony said. "I had a few conversations with my family and high school coaches, and then I decided this was the best place for me."
 
Two years later he convinced his brother to join him in Berkeley.
 
"My family is proud that both Patrick and I are student-athletes on scholarships at UC Berkeley," Tony said. "And we're glad we could help them live another piece of the American dream."