Tony Dora’s personal experience designates him as exceptionally qualified to write about leaving Cuba as a child and taking refuge in the United States. In his memoir, A Boy, an Orphanage, a Cuban Refugee: The Road to Freedom, Tony recounts the story of two refugee children (he and his little sister Norma) who were separated from their family.
Presently, Tony is a retired teacher of ESL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) to Adults. In his classes, he inspired his immigrant students to struggle amid life’s challenges and never give up. Prior to becoming a teacher, he worked for the Catholic Archdiocese of New York as Director for Spanish Language Communications. In that capacity he produced and directed syndicated TV and radio programs which were broadcast nationally via Univision and the Catholic Television Network.
After graduating from Montclair State University with an M.A. degree in Speech and Theater/Communications, Tony worked as an announcer and newswriter for Channel 47 (Telemundo Network), and as a newswriter for WTN (Worldwide Television News), a subsidiary of ABC TV. He was a member of AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) and the Writers Guild of America.
As a freelancer, Tony worked on and off-camera, writing, directing, and performing in commercials and Public Service Announcements. He did Voice Overs and directed the Spanish version of a children’s program: When I Grow Up.
He has enjoyed writing since he was a child, writing his first short stories as soon as he learned how to write – at the age six. Alas, those short stories have been lost. However, some of his subsequent short stories have been published. Some of these, as well as excepts from his memoir (A Boy, an Orphanage, a Cuban Refugee: The Road to Freedom) have been published in various college magazines, such as Psuche from Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City, New Jersey, The Windmil from Molloy College in Rockville Centre, New York, and other publications - Reflections in Poetry and Prose, Musings, and others.
In addition, Tony has written plays and a film script. At one time, Tony painted and had some exhibitions of his art work. His college art teacher advised that it would be very difficult to pursue both writing and painting, and recommended that he choose one. Tony chose writing.
Tony has worked as a public speaker before a national audience, as well as being a member of various organizations. One of these organizations is the MILL (Molloy Institute of Lifelong Learning), under the auspices of Molloy College, where Tony’s Power Point presentations on the history of Operation Pedro Pan have been well received.
Other organizations include Creative Writing classes at UFT RTC (United Federation of Teachers, Retired Teachers Chapter) in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, as well as at various libraries on Long Island. These avenues have given him the opportunity to present a shortened version of his memoir, during which people have expressed great interest in his story – leaving his birth country to come to a new one and transitioning into a whole new culture.
Tony is a member of Operation Pedro Pan Group, Inc., a national charitable organization founded in 1991. One of its missions is to connect with all Pedro Pan children, like Tony and Norma, who were exiled in the United States, giving them an opportunity to share their experiences.
At an earlier time, Tony was a commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force, where he worked as a Chaplain Candidate ministering to the troops. At the time, he was a seminarian studying to be a Roman Catholic priest. He was ordained deacon, graduated with a Master of Divinity in Pastoral Theology degree (M.Div.) and worked in a parish, where he prepared and delivered homilies.
What sets this memoir apart from others of this genre is that, in spite of the pain and sorrow, this is a feel-good story. It has a happy ending.
