Abraham Feliz travels all over the world monthly as a UPS cargo pilot flying 747 jets. McAllen is Feliz’s home base where he lives with his wife, Valerie, and their two young children. Feliz flies out the midpoint of every month from his home city on a UPS plane or a commercial jet to Louisville. From that Kentucky city, Feliz will help pilot UPS jets to Hawaii, then to Australia…
Amanda Nolan grew up the daughter of a small business owner, a mother who set a template to follow. Sure enough, Nolan started young with an artsy bent in making trinkets and homemade jewelry popular with her classmates. It gave her the first indications of what it’s like to make your own money. “It was something I was around,” she said of the entrepreneurial spirit. “I followed the momentum.” The…
Laurie and Robert Lozano met at a Dairy Queen in what would be the beginning of a personal relationship and one that led to the world of business. They were fellow DQ employees in Premont, a little town along U.S. Highway 281, heading north to Alice from Falfurrias. At the time, Laurie was one of the younger DQ managers in the venerable ice cream-and-hamburger restaurant chain. Years later, and now…
The McAllen ISD STRIDES Program is the inaugural winner of the Texas Restaurant Association’s Innovation in Excellence Award. The award serves to recognize individuals, groups or organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to innovation and excellence in the field of culinary and hospitality education. According to TRA, the award is a “celebration of those who have dedicated themselves to improving the education experience for both students and teachers and demonstrated…
Yolanda Feldstein’s two decades-long career in the technology and computing industry largely met her career aspirations. She had risen to management positions at a large San Antonio tech firm. There were no real reasons to look elsewhere for work opportunities other than the leisurely thoughts that drifted into her mind during visits to South Padre Island. The Island is where her husband Zack proposed to her. It has always been…
From bean to bar, there can be no rushing the in-between at Hidalgo’s Mozna Chocolate factory. Rosario Matulewicz and her team work meticulously at their craft in what was once a meat market. Today, large sacks of cacao beans from around the world stand near a grinder that whirls around the clock. It’s a days-long process. The beans will soon form into a thick batter-like substance to temper and mold…
Andrew Crowe enjoyed his first craft beer at Roosevelt’s at 7 on Main Street in McAllen. Crowe was a home brewer and envisioned partnering with a friend to someday open his own brewery. It could be a place where family and friends could gather. Crowe’s friend changed course and became a firefighter while Crowe went on to work at Roosevelt’s. He would eventually decide to apply for a two-year brewing…
A new Wendy’s location held its grand opening May 5 in Mercedes with the Mercedes Area Chamber of Commerce and the Development Corporation of Mercedes. The new location is at 8001 E. Expressway 83 on the northeast corner of Mile 2 E and Expressway 83. Highlighting the grand opening celebration were music, prizes, and giveaways. The first 100 dine-in customers were awarded free Wendy’s for a year. “We are thrilled…
Anna Gomez and Deborah Rios were the best of friends before deciding to become business partners. Friendship and business don’t always mix but this is a partnership that works. Gomez is a banker by profession and manages a branch bank in north McAllen. Rios is a teacher in Edinburg who co-owns a business with her husband. They had previously bandied about the idea of someday going into business together. For…
Brownsville’s band of brewery brothers is inching closer to opening the city’s first soup-to-nuts craft beer business. The Pluton Brewery Company is nearing completion of its 5,280-square-foot building on 805 E. Elizabeth in the city’s downtown. It’s a long time coming for Daniel Arizpe and Joey Martinez along with their partners and team of employees. They are taking their dream from making beer in the garage of a west Brownsville…