Armando stands 5'11" and weighs about 165 pounds. He is tanned and obviously works out on a regular basis but appears to be more of a runner than bodybuilder. His dark hair and full beard are just beginning to show hints of gray. His warm brown eyes are bright and restless. He is very matter of fact, some say blunt, but has an easy-going manner which tends to put people at ease.

Born and raised in Spanish Harlem, New York City, NY. His Puerto Rican family was poor, and, like many of his friends, Chavez dropped out of DeWitt Clinton High School. Many of his childhood friends went on to pursue lives of crime but, at age 17, he chose to avoid that destiny and joined the U.S. Army.

His Army career included combat in Vietnam as a Green Beret and medic, for which he earned two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star. He also completed his GED while on active duty. After a total of two years in Vietnam, Armando declined reenlistment and returned to Harlem to marry his childhood sweetheart Marisol Rivera.

After leaving active duty, he attended Bronx Community College of the City University of New York through an open enrollment program for veterans, earning an associate of arts degree. He then attended the University of California-San Francisco (UCSF) while working different jobs including paramedic. He graduated with honors at age 23 and was accepted into the UCSF Medical School. He not only graduated from medical school at the top of his class but was also the first student in the school's history to complete the four-year program in three years.

Trained in general and vascular surgery, Armando also completed a National Institutes of Health-sponsored fellowship in trauma, burns, and critical care. Afterward, he was recruited jointly by the Tucson Medical Center and the University of Arizona to start and direct Arizona’s first regional trauma care system. He went on to become the chairman of the State of Arizona Southern Regional Emergency Medical System, a professor of surgery, public health and family and community medicine at the University of Arizona. He currently serves as the staff surgeon for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and is a deputy sheriff.

A Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, Dr. Chavez maintains board certification in Preventive Medicine (Public Health) and Emergency Medicine (Emergency Medical Services and Critical Care Medicine).

His natural gift for languages has always been an asset when dealing with patients and he is fluent in Spanish and English, and proficient in American Sign Language (ASL), Latin, French, and Chinese.

He bears several tattoos, an American flag on his right shoulder with the 5th Special Forces Group flash below it, his left shoulder sports a stylized teal arrowhead with an upturned gold dagger crossed by three lightning bolts; above the arrowhead is a black scroll with a red outline and white lettering, reading "Co. A | Ranger Airborne | 75th Inf.". A grinning skull wearing a green beret with crossed assault rifle and bayonet below adorns the inside of his upper left forearm while a sinister white lion rampant over a gold V with “RT Idaho” above and “CCN” below appears on the inside of his upper right forearm. His upper left chest bears the Special Forces Crest.