The Cuban actor Roberto Perdomo received an emotional surprise last Friday while he was in the middle of an interview on the podcast Everyone Talks of the channel Cubamastv. He was handed an envelope containing a collective fundraising total of $1,531, contributed by 63 people.
The initiative originated from Amarilis Núñez, actress and director of the channel, following the flood of comments generated by a previous interview in which Perdomo candidly described the precarious situation in which he lives, relying on his pension.
The money was handed over in front of the cameras, with the actor visibly emotional. They also presented him with a list of the names of those who donated. The interview, published on YouTube, had exceeded 77,000 views at the time of this report.
The situation of the actor had moved thousands of Cubans both on and off the Island. In statements gathered in mid-August, Perdomo revealed that his retirement pension is only 6,000 pesos a month, a figure that he himself described as "offensive."
He explained that with that income, he couldn't save to buy an airplane ticket and meet his grandson Leo, who was born in Spain in April 2025. "I can leave whenever I want; what I don't have is money," he said.
Perdomo is a Spanish citizen. However, the crisis keeps him in Cuba, and he was also unable to say goodbye to his sister, who passed away from cancer in Spain on Mother's Day in 2025.
In July, the actor explained that he left the theater because his salary went entirely to transportation: around 4,000 pesos a month, which did not cover the transportation costs.
Upon receiving the envelope with the money, Perdomo could not contain his emotion. "A lifetime is not enough to express my gratitude for the things I have read, how I have been addressed, the wonders that have been written to me," he said.
Regarding the donation, he added: "It gives me courage, it gives me hope, it gives me confidence, it lifts me up. I was about to lose my enthusiasm for humanity."
The actor, known for over 13 years portraying Lieutenant Colonel Fernando in the police series «Tras la Huella», especially thanked those who have responded with such generosity, even though they have never met him: "I am amazed to see how people who do not live in Cuba, who we have never shaken hands, are capable of such a gesture."
In the program, there was a second surprise. Perdomo received an offer to participate as a guest actor in «La Cafetera», a new comedy series from Cubamastv. The production will consist of 20 episodes of 10-minute sketches and a fixed cast including Rigoberto Ferrera, Ángel Ramis, Ladies Díaz, and the channel's director herself.
Perdomo's case reflects the situation of thousands of retired Cubans whose pensions—ranging from 4,000 to 6,000 pesos per month—amount to between seven and ten dollars, which is insufficient to cover basic needs amid persistent inflation.
In that context, the Cubans' solidarity response became, in their own words, a testament that "there are still wonderful human beings, there are still people who are moved."
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