The Carpenter’s Daughter

2025 FRONTeras Magazine Vol. 1 No. 2 Issue

How does a daughter honor her father?

By taking the foundation he built... and expanding it with her own hands.

When Karina Mascorro walks into her shop each morning, she isn’t just running a business—she’s continuing a legacy that began over four decades ago. Her father, Zaragoza Vela, first opened the doors of Starr Moulding Cabinet Maker Supplies in 1984. What started as a small woodworking business in Roma, Texas, has now grown into a thriving, multi-generational enterprise rooted in skill, tradition, and pride.

Zaragoza was born in Miguel Alemán, Tamaulipas, growing up in Colonia Barrera. The son of a carpenter, he grew up surrounded by sawdust, tools, and the hands-on rhythm of a trade passed down from one generation to the next. He didn’t learn from books—he learned by doing. His specialty became trim work and custom kitchen design, skills he first honed in Miguel Alemán before eventually bringing both his family and his work north to Texas.

After a life-changing injury that severed three of his fingers, Zaragoza returned home to Escobares. He opened his own shop in Roma, Texas, where he continued to design and manufacture custom moulding and baseboards. His work stood out—not just because it was quality, but because it was his. He designed his own trim styles, traveled as far as North Carolina to buy specialty machinery, and built a name for himself by serving the local community with a level of craftsmanship rarely seen in Starr County.

He didn’t do it alone. His wife, Noemí Vela, also from Miguel Alemán, stood beside him from the beginning. Together they raised six children—four sons and two daughters—teaching them by example what hard work, family, and service really meant.

In 2022, Zaragoza passed the torch to one of his daughters, Karina. She now runs Starr Moulding alongside her son, Mayito, who studied business and brings a new generation of insight into the operation. Karina remolded her father's business and gave it a boost. But the heart of the business hasn’t changed. “We still serve the same customers my dad served when he started,” Karina says. “That’s what keeps us going.”

Karina grew up in Roma and is a proud Roma High Gladiator Class of 1997. In addition to running the family business, she serves on the Roma ISD school board, continuing her commitment to the community that raised her. She’s been married to Mario Mascorro since 1998, and together they have two sons, Mario and Diego. Buying her father’s business wasn’t just a practical decision—it was a natural one. She’s always loved building and constructing, and the business gives her the tools and flexibility to manage her own real estate properties as well.

Every one of Zaragoza and Noemí’s children has carved out their own version of the family business. Each independently owns a branch of Starr Moulding across the Rio Grande Valley, yet all are grounded in the same core values: craftsmanship, humility, and service to the local community. And even now, Zaragoza and Noemí still help out—offering advice, lending hands, and reminding everyone where it all began.

For Karina, the pride isn’t in profit margins or expansion. It’s in knowing that what her father built wasn’t just a business—it was a foundation. She’s not just making cabinets. She’s continuing a story that began with a carpenter’s hands and a vision bigger than one man could carry alone.

“Competition isn’t a concern,” she says. “Contractors and builders, especially those who are local, recognize the quality of our products, and that keeps our business steady.”

Karina tends to the business every day. She brews the coffee, balances the books, answers the calls, and wipes the floor. From 8 to 5, the business thrives—because she thrives.

What her father built wasn’t just a business—it was a path forward. Zaragoza never talked about what he didn’t have; he focused on what he could build. That mindset shaped Karina more than any single lesson. She watched him show up every day, solve problems with physical limitations, and lead with extraordinary determination. There were no shortcuts, no complaints—just the mindset that if something needed doing, you found a way to do it.

The business carries Zaragoza’s name, but its future belongs to his children. With every custom trim and hand-drawn design, they’re not just honoring where they come from—they’re investing in where they’re going. The real legacy isn’t the shop itself—it’s the standard he set.

Legacy isn’t something left behind. It’s something transferred over, piece by piece, to a new generation.

It started with a carpenter from Miguel Alemán. It continues with a daughter behind the counter in Roma. That’s a different kind of inheritance—because generational wealth isn’t money. It’s the ability to prosper in a competitive world and still be the one who runs the shop, opens the doors, and gets the work done.

That is a legacy.