Mural paints picture for a Super Bowl family feud

By Riley Funk

A 25-year-old mural is taking on special meaning in one St. Joseph household as two brothers look to this weekend’s Super Bowl to settle a longtime family feud.

For Jeanette Watson’s two sons, Dave and Paul Helfery, this game will be more than an ordinary Super Bowl. Dave is a die-hard fan of the Chiefs Kingdom and Paul is a proud member of the 49ers Faithful. The rivalry between the brothers has been going on since the pair were just kids.

Since the boys were young, their passion and fandom of football have created a strong bond.

“It’s brought the family together. That’s something they enjoy watching,” Watson said.

About 25 years ago, Paul decided to immortalize the brothers’ love of their favorite teams in a mural that still sits in Watson’s basement. The mural has both a Chiefs and a 49ers helmet connected by the NFL shield logo.

“It’s a nice piece of art, it’s lasted for over 25 years,” Watson said.

Now the question looms: Did Paul somehow predict both the Chiefs and 49ers would face off twice in the Super Bowl? Many would call it a stroke of luck, but Paul calls it hope.

“I painted this on the wall thinking one day it may happen. And sure enough, it did about four years ago,” he said. “He (Dave) got the better end of that one. Hopefully this time it’ll change.”

Dave grew up a Chiefs fan looking up to players like Derrick Thomas because he always played hard and was a game-changer for the franchise. Rooting for his hometown team is something he takes a lot of pride in, especially when the team struggled for a long time.

“You can see all those years losing, never winning a playoff game, and now we’re winning games,” he said.

Dave said the Chiefs’ current success is in large part thanks to Patrick Mahomes.

“Patrick Mahomes is my favorite Chief and that’s just because he can win a game just like Derrick (Thomas) could.”

Paul grew up first liking the 49ers for electric plays made by the franchise’s legends and was a huge fan of the team’s logo. He recalls the glory days of the 49ers when the likes of Joe Montana, Steve Young and Jerry Rice made winning seem all too easy.

He hopes some of his favorite players now, including Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle, can bring the “Faithful” another championship.

Paul is very superstitious during this go-around of the Super Bowl. The lead-up to the game won’t come with the usual banter usually seen between siblings.

“There’s probably not going to be any trash-talking after what happened four years ago,” he said. “I think I’m going to stay quiet until after the game. It depends on who wins, whether I answer my phone.”

It’s clear both brothers would like to see their teams win the game, but each also would like to see the Super Bowl come down to the wire.

One thing for sure is the family will be enjoying the epic matchup knowing they will always have a fond childhood memory to look back on. It also gives bragging rights to the pair’s mother whenever guests check out the basement.

“They look at all this and they can’t believe it. First thing they want to know ‘Who did that, who painted that?’ And I (said) ‘My son Paul, he’s very talented,’ … they are both talented,” Watson said.

For Watson, there is only one thing that can be added to the mural to make it even more unique.

“I would love it if Patrick Mahomes came down here and signed this,” she said.