The humanitarian activist Norge Ernesto Díaz Blak (Noly Blak) roamed the streets of Holguín with a backpack loaded with over 600,000 pesos to distribute among the sick, homeless individuals, the elderly, and families with hospitalized children, in a new solidarity initiative that was documented on his Facebook profile.
It all started with the generosity of a follower. “Adriani gave me 900 dollars. I sold it to distribute among the sick, the homeless, and those in need,” Noly explained at the beginning of the video. After converting that amount into Cuban pesos, he went out into the streets, ready to reach as many hands as he could.
His first stop was a pediatric hospital, where he primarily gave 20,000 pesos to each mother or father staying with their hospitalized children. The families came from distant areas such as Calixto García, Mayarí, Rafael Freire, Marcané, Cacocum, and Las Biajacas, and had been unable to leave the medical center for days or weeks.
Stories piled up in every corridor. A girl suffered from renal tubular acidosis and diabetes insipidus; another family needed a medication that was not available at the hospital. "Look, 20,000 pesos, it's not much, but well, that comes from the heart of a friend of mine," Noly told one of the mothers.
As night fell, the day continued in the streets. Elderly individuals, people with physical disabilities, Cubans rummaging through the trash for something to sell, and those waiting in line in front of a bank received between five thousand and twenty thousand pesos, depending on their circumstances.
One of the most emotional moments came with the reunion of a father who had taken care of his two daughters on his own. "God willing, one day we will have a home and rest under one roof," the man said as he received the assistance.
Noly Blak has spent years building a network of civic solidarity in Holguín, entirely funded by voluntary donations from Cubans both on the Island and abroad. His project "Houses for Cuba" has managed to build or repair more than 20 homes for vulnerable families, including one delivered to a mother with four children in Cacocum.
In March, the activist distributed 65,000 pesos among homeless individuals, the elderly, and people with disabilities on the streets of Holguín. In April, a campaign he initiated raised over three million pesos for a family in extreme poverty, and in May, another fundraising effort surpassed a million for two brothers from the Paraíso neighborhood.
In September, it also reported the case of Gretel, a young woman with paranoid schizophrenia confined in Velasco, Gibara, whose family expressed their gratitude with tears for the help received.
Filed under: