Meet the 2024 49ers Fan of the Year, Sofia Villalpando!

The Faithful wear a badge of honor that demonstrates their unwavering fandom and dedication to the San Francisco 49ers. This season, Sofia Villalpando is the 2024 49ers Fan of the Year who wears that badge like a gold medal.

From her home in Southern California, Sofia has flown around the country to attend 49ers games in the Bay Area and beyond. She hasn't missed one in nearly 60 games since she started traveling in 2022.

As a 49ers season ticket holder, Sofia opts to travel by herself and considers her solo travel an opportunity to meet with fellow 49ers fans-turned-friends in the tailgate lots. With the Faithful community, Sofia never feels alone on the road.

Sofia has also started organizing donation drives for the San Jose Family Shelter to give back to the community which she says has brought her so much joy over the years. Sofia has encouraged her tailgate "familia" and countless other NFL fans to make donations toward this common goal.

Sofia's commitment to giving back to the community is the embodiment of being Faithful to the Bay, regardless of where Sofia calls home. Our fans, our team and our organization will always be FAITHFUL TO THE BAY, and we're grateful to Sofia for her steadfast commitment and tireless effort on behalf of the team, the fans and the region.

Reymundo exemplifies what it truly means to be part of the Faithful. Having been a 49ers fan since the age of 5 when his dad took him to his first 49ers home game, he embodies what a 49ers fan should resemble: loyalty, perseverance, and passion. After successfully starting the Forever Faithful Azteca clothing brand and tailgate chapter for LatinX 49ers fans, his chapter helps connect other chapters and 49ers fans from across the globe.

During his younger years, Rey sustained a severe eye injury, causing him to go through nearly forty surgeries between the ages of 15 and 30. Now at 30, he was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer in his eye and it needed to be removed. However, Rey did not let this setback bring him down. He decided to bring positivity to this experience and get a 49ers prosthetic eye. Having been an aspiring rap artist in the Bay Area, Rey embraced his eye and named himself, "Eye of the Niner".

Outside of his 49ers fandom, Rey is proud to organize a toy drive that benefits farm workers in the local community who may not have the opportunity to purchase toys for their kids. Rey's passion for the 49ers and the community is one we should strive for and admire.

Ankita is currently serving as the Immunization Program Manager for San Mateo County in California. In this role, she is responsible for rolling out the COVID-19 vaccine for the county and setting up the first drive-through vaccination clinic in the state. Through this clinic, Ankita and her team have vaccinated over 130,000 residents, which equates to 92% of her county.

Her job consists of 16-18 hour work days, long clinic days, fighting to reach the hardest-to-reach population in the county, and being as equitable as possible for those members of color. In the midst of her vaccination efforts, Ankita found out that she has a pituitary tumor that may prevent her from ever having more kids and took her on a roller coaster of medical appointments, MRIs and emotional heartache.

Football has always been something that unites her family for better or worse, and Ankita was grateful to have this season to keep her going through the hard times. As she visited the first two pre-season games this year, Ankita thought to herself, "I wonder how many people were vaccinated through the clinics I was able to help stand up and therefore are that much safer enjoying America's favorite past time."

Mary Joy has been a 49ers fan since she was a little girl and grew up to be a proud season ticket holder at Levi's Stadium. Regardless of the play on the field, she has supported the 49ers at the highest level of loyalty. As an ER nurse for 10 years, Mary works 12-hour night shifts, but when the team is at home for game days, she'll leave her shift at 7:30 AM and head straight to Levi's Stadium to support her Niners.

Through the years, especially during the pandemic, the team has given her hope and helped push her through the more difficult nights at the hospital. As a diehard 49ers fan for decades, her support has never wavered, and in difficult years on the field, she has continued to show up and represent the faithful in her seats. Mary understands how difficult it is to overcome a difficult football schedule and unprecedented times in the medical field but believes that with a team-first mentality and some faith, we can overcome anything.