A view of Havana’s harbor.
Photos by Bruce Johnson (click on photos to enlarge)
“Cuba: An Educational and Humanitarian Initiative” will be presented by Bruce Johnson on Sunday, May 16, for LaPorte’s Chapter of People to People International.
Johnson was invited by People to People International Headquarters in Kansas City to be one of 12 Americans to visit schools, day care centers, artists, and other individuals and institutions in Cuba. PTPI was one of several organizations granted permission from the Office of Foreign Asset Control of the U.S. Treasury Department to engage in educational activities in the country, which is only 90 miles from the United States.
Johnson will discuss his experiences through his photographs of recent restoration of historic landmarks in the oldest areas of Havana, as well as the humanitarian and educational exchanges. Visits were also made to a performance of the National Ballet of Cuba and the home of award-winning author Ernest Hemingway, who lived in Cuba for 20 years.
Johnson learned that the average worker’s salary is less than $20 a month, and each person in the family receives a monthly ration of rice, beans, eggs, sugar, potatoes, and bananas.
The program will be held at First United Methodist Church, 1225 Michigan Ave., LaPorte, at 1:30 and is free and open to the public. Dinner is at 12:30 and is available for $10. Reservations must be made by May 12 by calling Mayme Stump at (219) 362-7268 or Sheila Pressel at (219) 575-3493.
An elementary school classroom visit.