Eighth Street, better known as "Calle Ocho", runs through Little Havana like an artery. Calle Ocho is the life blood of Little Havana. Since the early 1960's small shops, restaurants, tobacco factories, botanicas, record stores, and auto dealerships have lined its sun washed sidewalks, catering to its Cuban exile community and ever increasing Latin American population.

In 1968 my father, Pepe Vila, left Cuba and arrived in Miami. Like many other Cuban exiles at the time, he settled in Little Havana. He spent seven years working in car garages and body shops on Calle Ocho. In 1975, my father decided to start his own business. He rented out a small space and opened "Pepe Vila Body Shop". Twenty-seven years later my fathers little shop still remains open for business on Calle Ocho. He has witnessed the neighborhood undergo many changes. Friends have passed on, neighbors have moved out, and businesses have come and gone, yet "Pepe Vila Body Shop" has remained the same.