Welcome to the latest installment of Meet Moore People. This series is dedicated to the people around us who make Moore County a great place to live and work.

Many times we don’t know their name or anything about them. They are the smiling face helping us in the store, bank or any of the myriad places we go and interact with people every day.

Ruben Cardozo gets the most out of life. Despite still being in college – he’s majoring in business administration at UNC Greensboro – Cardozo has experience and interests usually associated with someone years older. The resident of Moore County, he lives between Robbins and Carthage, balances his studies with a job installing floors and a passion for buying, restoring and collecting cars.

In terms of vehicles, his latest project is a 1971 Volkswagen Beetle, which he purchased from his uncle in Texas.

“Whenever the time comes, I’ll sell it,” Cardozo, who graduated from North Moore High School, said. “I kind of just want to enjoy it for a while.”

While predicting the future isn’t easy, don’t expect his dabbling in automobiles to go away soon.

“I’ve been doing this for a while,” Cardozo, an offensive and defensive lineman when he played football in middle school, said. “My first car was a 1998 Honda Civic. I think it (collecting) will keep on going.” 

Cardozo has also been installing floors for a while. He’s been involved in the family business since his teens. 

“I was 13 or 14 when I started,” he said. “My father kind of pushes us – Cardozo has a brother and three sisters – to do things like that.”

Once he’s gotten his degree, Cardozo intends to use his academic and vocational knowledge to  advance professionally.

“I want to set up a shop, maybe in Southern Pines,” he said. “I want to be in sales, but want to be moving up the ranks. I want to make sure jobs go out as fast as they can.”

As he embraces the road ahead, his fondness for the pace and people of Moore County will continue.

“It’s quiet. It’s slow,” Cardozo said. “I appreciate it more than the bustling city.”

~Written by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Dave Lukow.

 

Courtesy feature photo.

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