Un poco de pintura y un vestido elegante para el niño Jesús
Rosario Gonzalez holds her baby Jesus doll that was repaired and dressed as Saint Judas Thaddaeus, the patron saint of hope, at Que Linda General Store in Boyle Heights for infant Christ’s first church visit on Candlemas, Feb. 2. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Family members Steven Sanchez, 8, left; Angel Sanchez, 6; Juan Sanchez and Ana Navarre, of Fontana, admire their baby Jesus, newly dressed in an outfit that symbolizes health, at Christina Parodi’s store at El Mercadito. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Christina Parodi is asked to repair all kinds of baby Jesuses and their ailments. Her shop at Boyle Heights’ El Mercadito has been open for 40 years. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Laura Gutierez, right, dresses up Rosario Gonzalez’s baby Jesus at Que Linda General Store. Prices range from $14 to outfit a jalapeño-sized Jesus to $45 for a life-size doll. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Melissa Linares, 10, holds her baby Jesus, newly repaired and dressed up in white, as Christina Parodi, owner of Que Linda General Store, repairs the finger of another customer’s baby Jesus doll. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
“Come in! Come in!” Christina Parodi, using plaster and paint to repair the finger of a baby Jesus doll, often yells to customers at her shop at El Mercadito in Boyle Heights. “What do you need? We have it all.” (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
