‘Temporary’ Job Lasts 51 Years And Counting
In 1965, Sonia Moss took what she thought would be a temporary job at the front desk of a downtown office. She intended to stay around six months before going back into the business world. More than five decades later, she’s still not sure when she will leave.
“It’s because [there’s] never a dull moment, and I guarantee you that today,” she said.
Moss, or “Miss Sonia” as she is known around the office, is the first staff member most customers see at the U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management office on Preston Road.
In the early 1960s, Moss took time off from her career to raise her young son and daughter. But when her son was old enough to watch his younger sister, she decided it was time to go back to work.
Fifty years ago, working at a bank meant doing everything by hand, assisted only by a 10-digit calculator. Everyone did a little bit of everything. Moss recalled working after-hours on the monstrous proof machines at the local bank branches to process the transactions coming off the teller’s line.
She served a short stint as a teller in the 1980s, but was more than happy to return to the front desk when the opportunity presented itself.
“Boy, I didn’t like that at all,” she said. “I kept saying I like to take care of my money, but not somebody else’s.”
In her current front desk role, Moss is an integral part of everyday operations and is revered as somewhat of a leader within the office.
“We talk a lot and feel like we are a family here,” Market Executive Jennifer Chandler said, “so it’s with that respect we say that [she is] kind of leading the family.”
Chandler, who has worked with Moss for almost 15 years, said she has seen how important Moss has become to the Park Cities community both in and out of the office.
Moss actively volunteers through Bank of America. She coordinates the office’s Meals on Wheels volunteers every Thursday. She also volunteers on Saturday mornings at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, one of her favorite places, to keep herself busy when she is not at work.
“Really and truly, it’s a joy to be around people and give back to the people that you need to give back to,” she said.
For now, Moss does not know when she will hang up the phone at her desk for the last time. She said at her age, it’s best to live for the day and enjoy it.
Chandler doesn’t want to see Moss leave any time soon. “We wouldn’t know what to do without her.”
