A touching gesture! An 85-year-old Cuban man, who still works at an agricultural cooperative, couldn't hold back his tears when a young content creator surprised him with a gift of 3,000 Cuban pesos. The moving moment was captured in a video shared on TikTok by the account @realmente.cubanos3.
The man had just returned from working in the fields when the young man approached him to chat. During their conversation, he shared that despite his advanced age, he continues to work at a cooperative where he earns between 1,300 and 1,400 pesos every two weeks.
"According to the pay period, he receives one thousand three hundred, one thousand four hundred," explained the elder when asked how much money he earned from his work. If he received similar amounts in both pay periods, his monthly income would be around 2,600 or 2,800 Cuban pesos.
But what the man didn't expect was that the conversation would end with a surprise. "I'm a young guy, I dedicate myself to helping people, and look, I wanted to give you this three thousand," the content creator said as he handed over the money.
The elderly man's reaction was one of pure emotion. Visibly moved, he received the gift amidst tears and words of gratitude. "May God repay you with luck and health," he expressed during the meeting.
The young man also wanted to clarify that behind that assistance were others who collaborated with his philanthropic initiative. "This is from some people called DG Glass, who support me so that I can help others," he explained.
The video, accompanied by the description "At 85 years old and fighting in a cooperative. Worth admiring," sparked numerous reactions on TikTok. In the first hours, it garnered nearly 50,000 views, over 4,400 reactions, and 265 comments.
It is not the first time that this type of initiative has moved social media users. Recently, another gesture of solidarity with Cuban elders brought tears and emotion, demonstrating how small acts of assistance can make a difference in the lives of those facing economic hardships.
The same TikTok account featured a similar story in September when it gave 1,000 pesos to a Cuban grandfather who was taking his grandchildren to school on a bicycle. The following day, the family received food and an additional 5,000 pesos. That story also went viral, surpassing 357,000 views on Facebook.
The story of this 85-year-old worker is reminiscent of another Cuban elder of the same age who travels the countryside selling brooms, highlighting the economic hardships faced by many elderly individuals on the island.
The precariousness of retirees' incomes has also been reflected in various studies. A survey by the Independent Labor Association of Cuba involving 506 retirees indicated that 90.7% continued working after retiring, and 99% considered their pension insufficient to meet essential needs.
On his part, economist Javier Pérez Capdevila estimated that a person needed around 96,060 pesos per month to meet their basic needs, of which more than 70,000 was for food.
Meanwhile, the elderly man from the cooperative received assistance that, although modest compared to the high cost of living in Cuba, exceeded what he typically earns in a two-week period of work. His emotion upon receiving the money was the most touching moment of the encounter.
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