Florida Banking July 2023

STRAIGHT TALK FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

CELEBRATING AMERICA’S BIRTHDAY IN FREEDOM

BY ALEJANDRO “ALEX” SANCHEZ, FBA PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

A s we celebrate America’s birthday on July 4th, the Sanchez family celebrates living in freedom in the greatest country ever created. My mother, brothers and I will never forget the day that we left behind the tyranny of Castro’s Socialist Cuba to come to the freedom of the United States. It was September 3, 1962. This year marks the 61st anniversary of that day. My father fled Cuba in 1961 on a cargo ship bound for Spain to escape communists who were after him. My mother stayed behind with me and my two older brothers — Juan, who at just 10 years old was now the man of the house, and Guillermo, age 9 — in the house that she and my father had built in the suburbs of Havana. Goons from Cuba’s revolutionary army would come by at all times of day and night to harass my mom. They would call her names and shout that we were traitors to the communist revolution, warning that she would lose her home soon. My two older brothers were always at my mom’s side when the soldiers came, helping her and standing strong with her. When Castro closed all of the country’s Catholic schools, my mom pulled my two brothers from the public schools. My mom did not want her sons to attend public schools where the children were being indoctrinated by the communists to believe in Fidel as the Supreme Being and that there was no God. My father, who stayed in Spain for just a few months after his arrival, was eventually granted political asylum in the United States and immediately began the paperwork to have us leave Cuba on one of the Freedom Flights President Kennedy had arranged for Cuban families seeking freedom in the United States. Waiting to be Reunited As a young boy, I would often ask my mother where Papa was. She always replied that I would see him again soon, but that he was always close to my heart. Not long after my father began to work on having our family removed from Cuba, my mother — who told

me this story — finally received the good news: she would be able to leave Cuba with her three sons. For many months she had fought with Cuba’s communist government to allow Juan, my eldest brother, to leave the country with us. (The Cuban government wanted Juan to stay behind since he was 10 years old and could soon begin military training and communist indoctrination.) My mom won — she is one tough lady when she has to be. Today she is 92 and loves America with all her heart. When I awoke the morning of September 3, 1962, I had no idea what would happen to my family and me on that day. My mom grabbed a few family photographs, a dress, and one set of clothes for each of us boys and stuffed everything into one small suitcase. The communist government did not allow us to leave with money or jewelry, just that one small suitcase for four people. That day was one of mixed emotions for my mother. On the one hand, she wanted to rejoin her husband in the United States so her three children could be raised in freedom. Cuba had become a land of tyranny, a nation without freedom of religion or speech. On the other hand, she would be leaving home, the land she loved and never expected to leave. She would also be leaving behind her aging parents and her brothers and sisters, not knowing if she would ever see them again. As my grandparents hugged and kissed us goodbye, my mom hugged her father, mother, brothers and sisters for what would be the last time in her life. I cannot even imagine that, can you? Our family friend Pepe arrived to take us to the airport for the 1:00 PM Cuban Airlines flight to Miami. As we sat in the back seat of the car, my mom turned around to look through the back window and wave goodbye to her family and friends. After being searched by Cuban soldiers, we boarded the plane and were on our way to freedom. One of the few things I do remember was seeing the ground below as the airplane took off.

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