Angela Morales was a trailblazer for the Hispanic community in Houston. Alongside her husband Felix Morales, they opened the first Hispanic-owned funeral home in Houston in 1931. Since then, Morales Funeral Home has remained a staple within the community.
The Morales’ journey as a couple began in San Antonio. Angela’s mom, who had cancer, said her dying wish was for her daughter to marry. She and Felix fulfilled her mother's wish, marrying in March 1928. A few years later, the couple moved to Houston from San Antonio and opened their funeral business.
In the 1940s, Felix was scared he might get drafted to serve in World War II, and urged Angela to enroll in an embalming school and obtain her funeral’s director's license just in case. Angela listened to her husband and became the first woman in Harris County to earn a mortician’s license in 1942.
Angela and her husband also owned and operated the city’s first Spanish-language radio station, where they played Tejano music. On the radio, listeners looking for a job could also find one through a program called "Yo Necesito Trabajo," or "I Need Work," where new immigrants to the city would call in looking for work.
Both Angela and Felix have passed away, but their granddaughter Christina now runs the funeral home business, carrying on the family’s legacy.
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