Snow In Havana - Strength, Courage and the Magic of Hope

Zoila deVelasco Andricain - Mom, just two years before fleeing Cuba to America

Overcoming obstacles. Persevering through dark times. Leaning on those you love to hold you up when you are not at your best.
 
Life's unexpected events and themes of empowerment have often driven the creative process of the work I do at Jewel of Havana. In fact, I named the company after the strongest woman I know, my mother. My new Snow in Havana Jewelry line is a tribute to her story, and what an amazing story it is!
 
My mother first came to the United States from Cuba as part of Operation Peter Pan. Operation Peter Pan (or Pedro Pan) was led by Father Byran O. Walsh in response to the mounting political regime of Fidel Castro. As Castro began closing private schools, fears that the government would begin sending minors to work camps in the Soviet Union caused many Cuban parents to risk their lives and homes to get children out of the country and into Miami.
 
Children of all ages were sent to America alone, relying on shelters and group homes run by Catholic Charities. The operation began in 1960 but abruptly ended in 1962, following the Cuban Missile Crisis. Because of this, nearly all of the children were without their parents until the later half of the decade. Though most were eventually reunited with their parents, some never saw them again.
 
One of those children was my mother. She was 17 when she came to America, after working for the underground herself. I wanted to ask her a few questions about her own experience.

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Two brave ladies. My mom and grandmother just before their world turned upside down.

If you could describe your experience in one word, what would it be?

I guess the word would be: “lesson”. A real life lesson.

The experience taught me so much about myself and how lucky I had been to be born from parents that had instilled in me the faith, values and discipline that would help me through the saddest and scariest season of my life. Parents that loved me to the point of sending me to safety to another country knowing well that their chances of escaping themselves from the island were very slim. Most important, I also learned, at that young age, the value of freedom, something that many people take for granted. 

What was the most challenging part of being in America?

Communication was probably the greatest challenge. I had studied English in school and was able to speak the language to get by. However, understanding people that spoke fast or use idioms that I was not familiar with was very difficult. At school, it would take me a very long time to complete reading assignments and since I had to also work to sustain myself, there was not much time for sleeping.

Do you think you learned anything about yourself throughout this ordeal?

I learned that God was truly my rock and my companion and that, feeling Him at my side, I was stronger than I could have ever imagined. That I grew up and matured in the time it takes an airplane to fly from Cuba to Miami. That I (a sheltered and pampered teenager) was able to hold a full-time job and save money, while at the same time still continue my education. That I was extremely grateful that my new-found country was full of generous people and opportunities that allowed me to heal and dream again.

Zoila and Ana Andricain - Mother and grateful daughter

Why Snow In Havana?

So, why Snow in Havana? Well, it’s a reference to one of my favorite books, “Waiting for Snow in Havana” by Carlos Eire, which chronicles his own story of fleeing Cuba under Operation Peter Pan. The combination of Erie’s story, that of my mothers, and perhaps even the unknown stories of the thousands of other Cuban children who came to America almost six decades ago, sums up some of the core beliefs I learned from my mother. We all have what it takes to weather any storm (even when we don't think we can). We do not know what life holds for us, but there is always hope and new beginnings and if we persevere, miracles can happen, and what could be more miraculous than Snow in Havana?

Introducing the Snow In Havana Jewelry Collection

Inspired by the strength and courage we all have within us to weather any storm. Jewelry elegant enough to dance the night away at the Tropicana in the romantic Cuba of my mother's youth, a symbol of their adopted country and the magic of hope and new beginnings.

SHOP SNOW IN HAVANA JEWELRY