Name / Nombre : Arturo O . Fuente , Jr . Title / Titulo : President Company / Compañia ? Tampa Sweethearts Cigar Company What is your Pais ? Cuban descent
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : How did you get started in your career or profession ? Arturo O . Fuente , Jr .: I graduated from the University of South Florida in 1978 and began my career as a mechanical engineer . I spent 20 + years working in this field for General Electric & Lockheed Martin Corporation in Largo , FL . I grew up in the cigar industry with my family and learned the different aspects of the cigar business . The current company I was working for at the time , Lockheed Martin , was consolidating the department I was working for and it was moving to New Mexico . At that same time , my father was making plans to retire from Tampa Sweethearts , a mail order and retail outlet company in Ybor City . It was then that I decided to get back to what was in my blood and in my roots ; the family ’ s cigar business . I took over as President .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Tell us about your familia : Arturo O . Fuente , Jr .: I have been married for 35 years to Martha Fabelo Fuente , who is Cuban . We have one daughter , Kristin who is 29 years old . My father , Arturo O . Fuente , Sr ., still lives here in Tampa and is semi-retired from the company . My mother , Estella , passed away in 2002 . I have one brother , Randy Fuente .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Who ( here or departed ) do you consider to be a role model in the Latino Community , and why ? Arturo O . Fuente , Jr .: The retired Honorable Judge , E . J . Salcines , I think is a dominant role model in the Latino community . He has proven to be one successful Latino . Salcines stands up for what he believes in and he helps others . He is a great leader and has many accomplishments including his involvement in many civic and community organizations . Honorable Judge Salcines is well-liked and such a wonderful speaker to listen to . Most importantly , he is proud of his heritage and will gladly share it with you without hesitation .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Are you involved in any community organizations ? If yes – which ones ? Arturo O . Fuente , Jr .: I am currently serving on the Supervisory Committee for the GTE Federal Credit Union , a board member of Tampa Bay & Company , member of the Rotary Club of Tampa and also the Ybor City Rotary Club . I also serve on the board of the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce and I will be installed as the new Chairman of the Board in May 2010 .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : What are your immediate and / or long term professional goals ? Arturo O . Fuente , Jr .: My current goal , which is already in motion is La Estampa Cigar Company . We are branching out a wholesale division that will distribute our Flor de Ybor City and Ybor Gold cigars . These cigars will commemorate and highlight the area of historic Ybor City and what it represented when it was once the “ Cigar Capital of the World .”
Name / Nombre : Richard Gonzmart Title / Titulo : President , 4th generation family member Company / Compañia ? Columbia Restaurant Group What is your Pais ? Spanish descent
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : How did you get started in your career or profession ? Richard Gonzmart : My education in food preparation began at birth . I am the great-grandson of Casimiro Hernandez , Sr ., the founder of the world-famous Columbia Restaurant in Tampa ’ s Historic Ybor City . The Columbia was founded in 1905 and is the oldest restaurant in Florida , and the largest Spanish restaurant in the world . My practical experience in the food industry began at the early age of 12 , when I started spending summers as an apprentice cook in the Columbia kitchen . I graduated high school from Tampa ’ s Jesuit High School in 1971 and continued at the University of Denver School of Hotel and Restaurant Management and attended the University of Madrid , Escuela de Hosteleria . I am now president of the
Columbia Restaurant Group , which includes six Columbia Restaurants , one Columbia Café , and two Cha Cha Coconuts , a tropical bar and grill .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Tell us about your familia : Richard Gonzmart : I have been married to my wife , Melanie Heiny Gonzmart since 1973 . We have two daughters , Lauren Gonzmart Schellman and Andrea Gonzmart Turner . We both work for the family business at the corporate office . We also have five grandchildren : twins Isabella and Michael , Maximilian , Alexander and Amelia .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Who ( here or departed ) do you consider to be a role model in the Latino Community , and why ? Richard Gonzmart : My role models in the Latino community are my parents Adela and Cesar Gonzmart and my grandfather , Casimiro Hernandez Jr . I choose them for their dedication to our family business for being visionaries , for always striving to be the best that they could be , and for never giving up even when the restaurant experienced difficult times .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : What is your favorite type of Latin food ; music and sports sport ’ s team ? Richard Gonzmart : My favorite Latin food is The Columbia ’ s Cuban / Spanish cuisine . My favortie athletic team is Real Madrid . My favorite Latin music is the violin music that my Father , Cesar Gonzmart , played and recorded .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : What was the biggest challenge that you have encountered in life and how did you overcome it ? Richard Gonzmart : I was diagnosed as an adult with ADD , and suffered from dyslexia . When I finally understood that I had a learning disability , it gave me confidence to learn that I had a special talent , and how to develop and use it to succeed by surrounding myself around great people that could put my vision and thoughts into action .
Name / Nombre : Charlie Miranda Title / Titulo : City Councilman Company / Compañia ? City of Tampa What is your Pais ? Spanish & Cuba descent
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : How did you get started in your career or profession ?
Charlie Miranda : When I was a teenager I got involved in politics . I tagged along with Mayor Nick Nuccio and Sam Gibbon ’ s campaign for Congress . There was a time when politicians were shaking hands with everyone or mano a mano ; talking to hundreds and hundreds of people , visiting cigar factories and can companies and so forth – it was always the personal experience , face to face .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : As a young boy , what did you aspire to become ? Charlie Miranda : As you can imagine , things were a lot different in my era ( 1960 ’ s ), the only thing that my parents encouraged me to do was to finish high school . It was so important to them because neither my mother nor my father were able to have a formal education .
At one time I thought I wanted to be a ball player . I played with many who later became major league players – the most famous is the Manager of the St . Louis Cardinals , Tony LaRusso . However , I stopped playing organized baseball when I was 14 years of age because my Father was ill and I had to work to help support the family .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Tell us about your familia ? Charlie Miranda : My grandfather on my mother ’ s side came from Ovieda , Spain and my grandmother on my mother ’ s side came from the Canary Islands . They both came to the U . S . through Cuba in the late 1870s . I am not familiar with my grandparent ’ s heritage on my father ’ s side of the family . My father was born in Cein Fuegos , Cuba and came to the United States in 1911 . I married my childhood sweetheart , the former Shirley Martinez in 1961 and we were married 48 years until her death in December – it has been so terribly lonely without her but thank God for my three children and their respective spouses ; Yvette ( Michael ) Chapman and their three daughters , Danette
( John ) Suarez and their three daughters and my son Frank ( Gina ) and their two sons . My family and my close friends have been my salvation during these past few months .
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : Are you involved in any community organizations ? If yes – which ones ? Charlie Miranda : Tampa Bay Water - Mayoral Appointment , Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center – Board Member , City Council Appointment , Lowry Park Zoo – Board Member , City Council Appointment , Life Enrichment Center – Board Member
Jolie Gonzalez / Latin Times : What was the biggest challenge that you have encountered in life and how did you overcome it ? Charlie Miranda : As a young boy in Tampa , I knew no other language other than Spanish so it wasn ’ t until I entered the first grade that I was introduced to the English language – I had some very difficult times . But through my continuing in the education system in Tampa and with the help of friends , practicing the English language allowed me to overcome that challenge .