Two weeks before a planned trip to Cuba, and weeks away from stated rollbacks of loosened travel restrictions to the Island, a VICE documentary inspired the creation of a project to bring skateboards to Cuba: Appreci-skate Cuba.
My appeal for support on Facebook stated the desire for "a few used or new skateboards." However, I flew from Chicago airport to Havana, Cuba, with twenty-two fully equipped brand new boards collaboratively gifted by Eduskate Skate Shop, Rekon Skateboards, and dozens of people from D.C., St.Louis, Cedar Rapids; to Beijing, China.
The message of the project was, despite the differences of our governments and politics; people connect through their passions, desires, and hopes. The reflection of Cuba, captured through our experience, was one of hardship; but, also, of a vibrant, resilient people who admirably survive through community dependence and an individual spirit of hustle.
"De donde es tu Madre?" Y~ didn't know it, but we wanted to meet his Mom to ask if he could have a skateboard. Out of the group of kids we were skating with he showed love for it. Besides that, he was just a good, delightful kid with a big smile - we liked him. He waved us to follow and we skated to his house. When we got there he ran in and both his parents came out to welcome us; personifying goodness, humility, and wholesomeness. We all talked about what a good boy Y~ is. And they were proud to bring us in and show us Y's~ report card. His class marks were all "Muy Bien" with one "Bien" in English. We laughed and agreed while Y~ works on his English, we'll work on our Spanish.
When we asked his parents if we could give him the skateboard, their eyes watered with emotion. To them it was such an extravagant gift. Moments later, even Y~ had to ask again, hugging the board with excitement, "Is it mine?!" We all hugged, kissed, shook hands, and we left. But 10 minutes later Y~ caught up with us to talk some more, but without his board. "Where's your board Y~?!" we asked. His parents told him he can't ride the board in the neighborhood unless they are watching - it's too extravagant I bet.
He was floating around while we were putting boards together - just kind of invisible - until he walked up meekly and asked, "Can I see a board?" I watched as one of the skaters showed him the basics and, moments later, two rushed to save him from careening off a flight of stairs. But he loved the board. He loved holding it. He loved being around the crew. This was a cool day for Y~.
He knew we wanted to give him a board as we walked to his house. His Mom and sister appeared uneasy as a small swarm of skateboarders clustered around Y~ at the door; but as Osney Bsanchez spoke with the Mom she disarmed into a smile; and, nodding with permission exclaimed, "Y~ goes to watch the skaters everyday, but never had a board!"
Y~ with his perpetual smile said softly, "Thank you," as he gave us big neck straddling hugs.
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A~ had the ear-ringed street-durable edge; a not-intimidated-by-strangers boldness; authentic interest and curiosity, with a dash of the hustler spirit. Pointing to our boards, he gestured to see one. He mounted it with flip flops and rolled back and forth."I want to travel the world doing [skateboard] tricks," he said. He crouched and launched himself in the air to ollie, but the board clung to the street. "I had a skateboard years ago from a Canadian guy, but it broke." A teen sitting close, who had been half-listening with his earbuds in, smirked.
Despite language differences, we asked him about school and family. His response for how are you doing in school was the international hand-gesture for "so-so." I recalled he had a pack of smokes in his hand when he first approached, so I asked, "Do you smoke? "Oh no," A~ said, "I threw those away."
The hustle is strong in Havana, but I say that affectionately. Regardless of where you are and who you meet it's hard to judge what's real; but the hugs he gave when we left him - we're certain were true gratitude. Board delivered.
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Tail down, nose in the air, he slid his board to a stop at my feet with a warm smile and his hand extended. That's how I remember meeting Osney Sanchez [pictured front-and-center in a red hat]. We had spent the entire day riding around, but our search for board-lovers was fruitless until a "hey!" rang-out from a cluster of fist-pumping skateboarders in Central Park, Santa Clara.
Santa Clara is for the skateboard purists. It's what the O.G.'s lament skating was, has gotten away from, but should be again. There's no skatepark; it's an oddity and mildly illegal, but If you have one or a love for them, you're a kindred spirit. The family tree is small here, a few dozen maybe, but they're all close and share everything.
Osney is at the top of that tree. He's been riding the longest and members of the crew say, "He's one of the best," landing elite tricks because he's logged years refining them. He wears the responsibility of being a pioneer dutifully by looking out for the community. We immediately liked him - we liked the whole crew - and made him the point-man for distributing boards.
Four boards were delivered here; and because it's a trickle-down skateboard economy in Santa Clara, everyone benefited. So, in the last picture, with all the kids sitting around a Mac (mine), the whole crew is writing you Joel Lydon, Jessie Nichole, Nick Balassi, David Balassi, Nova McBee, Ira McBee, Shalom, Beatirix, and Nicole Bourque. Paraphrasing - From all the skaters in Santa Clara, thank you to all who contributed even a little something. We feel fortunate to have gotten these boards as it is not easy for us. We hope to keep in touch; and know you have friends in us who you can count on in any situation.
Our team:
Osney, Oscar, Luis, Enrique, Lazaro, Manolo, Luis, Fernandez, Edison, Eduardo, Vittorio, Annalie, Liliet, Germani, Andi, Anderson, Daniel, Orestico, Carlos, and Daniel.
After feeling it out a few times, A~ put one glittering sneaker on the center of the board and the other on the ground. She then kicked, she pushed and - pulling her foot up on the board to the other - she coasted. With one hand shooting out to point at his daughter and the other waiving frantically to get his wife's attention, the father laughed excitedly and said, "It's her first time on a skateboard!" He proudly attributed her instinctive skate-mastery to footwork skills honed while playing, "fútbol."
And A~ sailed down the center of the Prado - through unpredictable moving figures and a variety of wheeled mechanisms, with grace and an air of confidence - until the board stopped. Then she turned around and sailed right on back. She did this for awhile, which thrilled us. "Oh yeah, it's definitely hers," we said.
Before we showed up, the Feria family was spending Friday evening sitting in the Prado entertaining themselves with each other. We had a sense they loved being together. So, besides this being a gift to A~, it was a gift to the family. Family togetherness and a sense of community are endearing qualities encountered often in Cuba, and we appreciated it.
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Back in Havana, a 4 block concrete promenade descends from the Capitol - The Prado. It's a famous skate location, with long Havana history. Every day, hundreds of wheels roll and decks slam this perfect tree-lined runway. It's also the place we were determined to give away a few boards. This was a tough task as we were immediately surrounded by kids, many having legitimate needs, but as is our MO, we weren't there to randomly give away boards but to allow things to develop.
It was a pleasure to give Liam and Luis boards. They stuck around long after the crowds dissipated. They hung-out morning to night, for a couple of days, assisting with logistical needs and last minute tourist details. But, in addition to that, we pegged them for board delivery because of their efforts in retrieving a stolen board - the "China Watermelon" board. It happened quickly, a kid asked to see it, and it disappeared. Luis feverishly scanned the Prado with me, while Liam assembled a team of miniature investigators and followed a trail of intel with Nancy. An hour later, vigilante justice was exacted when the board was extracted from a house blocks away, with the culprit having to answer to his parental authorities. All of it was actually pretty heartwarming and the scene of this band of justice warriors was pretty hilarious.
The "Sword of Zelda" board - coveted by many beholders in Cuba - was given to Elliot. He's studying to be a nurse and speaks English well because he diligently studies every week from his phone. He had a great spirit and real genuine humble appreciation. "God bless you, man," he said, I've dreamed of having a board like this my whole life."
Hours after we gave these boards away, I saw Luis had his old wheels back on his board. When I asked him about it he pointed to his friend holding an old board with the brand new wheels. Sharing is a common feature of the Cuban skate culture here and why we felt great about the destination of these boards. Close friends spread the wealth and we appreciated that.
Eric's hustle is music. It's his passion - classical Cuban, jazz influenced, or international flavors - and it's part of his testimony. He wasn't shy to share he spent years in prison, "but I found Jesus and He changed my life," he said. We took a classic taxi to his house where he records songs; we played with his beautiful kids, met his lovely wife, and listened to his music over Cuban coffee. As one song harmonized through his Havana home, his daughter exclaimed with pride, "He wrote this song for me!" as she playfully sauntered across the room.
Besides being a loving Dad, husband, and music extraordinaire, he's a skateboarder who helps facilitate skate activities in Havana. Earlier in the day, he took us to his Papa's neighborhood to give boards to up-and-coming skaters F~, M~, and J~. Eric already had a board, however, his son Little E~(white hat) didn't because most are too big, but this one was the perfect size.
Little M~ was completely absorbed by the board. His Dad would be casting the net for a fresh catch, but the last fish still laid flapping on the sidewalk while M~ stumbled around on this new wheeled acquaintance. "Hurry up M~ you're behind!" L~ would yell, and M~ would run back to the fish. To help him get caught back up Nancy picked up the fish with little M~, and I pushed the bike. Then little M~ would get back on the board. His father, amused, let his son go.
After awhile little M~ looked up at us hopefully, with a toothless grin, and asked, "regalo!?" We looked at L~ for approval and he nodded; with his hand over his heart, and deep sincerity, he said, "gracias." It was no surprise Little M~ was done fishing after that, and his Dad seemed alright with it. A passing neighbor, who spoke English, stopped to tell us, "L~ has five children and he fishes everyday like this to feed his family. He's a good hardworking man. That was nice of you." ×
UPDATE: This morning, as we suspected, we found L~ fishing and M~ has quit the fishing industry and, instead, was thrashing with his new board. His older sister R~ was there. We passed her a board and, Incredibly, for never riding a board before, she has remarkable balance and a natural affinity for doing tricks - probably from her background of being a gymnast. After watching R~ and M~ compete in the time honored tradition of sibling rivalry, it was clear what needed to happen next. I pulled a board from my bag and said, "
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