Born in 1942, Felix Gonzalez started working in a bakery in Mexico at the age of 12 - unable to continue in school past the fourth grade, one of five children in a town with no public education.  

When Mr. Gonzalez was 25 years old, he married Felippa, whom he had known, "De se que somo ninos," and came to the United States for a better opportunity.

In 1992, Felippa's sister Dora opened a baker in downtown Dallas - Tia Dora's Bakery on the corner of Cockrell Hill and Jefferson.  Most of the family helped in the beginning, and she's been successful.  Mr. Gonzalez worked afternoons at Tia Dora's, after a full shift as a machine operator.

Then the company he'd worked for since 1979 decided to move its operations to Florida.  So without a job, he decided to open a bakery.  In 2000, Gonzalez Bakery was opened and has been a great success.  

Mr. Gonzalez and his contingent of skilled workers and dedicated family members continue to pass the long days in the steady rhythm of familiar work, a rolling, swinging comfortable rhythm accompanied by lively Latino music and punctuated by laughter and camaraderie. 

Diana Buckly
Daily Light