Cuban Scientist Sells Shots of Coffee to Survive Retirement

Before, the retired doctor and researcher sold wine, says his daughter, because “his retirement isn’t enough for anything.”

By 14ymedio

HAVANA TIMES – “One day he told me, ’I’m going to sell coffee,’ and I swear my heart sank.” Elizabeth recalls the words of doctor and researcher Raúl González Hernández, whose 80th birthday was celebrated last Sunday. “My brain thought: My God, a retired scientist, creator of a product and its line like Trofin — a drug for the treatment of anemia — selling coffee? I froze.”

The woman shared the reality of every Cuban on social media and recalled that her father “already sold wine” because “his retirement isn’t enough for anything,” and when he left work, things worsened.

The scientist’s daughter expressed her admiration for the 80-year-old man who has been an example of tenacity. “You started milking cows as a child to help your parents, but you grew to become a scientist, a doctor of science, a senior researcher, and the creator of a product that helps so much and its patents. You’ve never tired, Dad.”

González has taught numerous courses and lectured in Cuba, Russia, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. His research was instrumental in obtaining donations for the island. Between 1992 and 1993, the Venezuelan firm Promed contributed $10,000 for clinical trials and registration of the drug Trofin, an anti-anemia drug.

“At 80 (years old) you split your sides and sell coffee without a hint of frustration, you know that it’s not you who is wrong, it’s them, and they should feel the shame, not us.”

However, some government officials took her words as a harsh denunciation, so in a second post on her Facebook account, she clarified: “I’m telling the truth about my life, my father’s life, which unfortunately is the life of many Cubans. I didn’t provoke it, I didn’t invent it, I didn’t imagine it. On the contrary, I live it and suffer it like his daughter, because in my 46 years I never saw him tire, always working and fighting.”

Elizabeth says her father “listens to the news on the radio because the TV broke, and where do I get the money to fix it? Because the roof of the house is just rebar, and how much does a sack of cement cost today?” The scientist, she adds, “had to give up his car because it was rotting.” The woman emphasizes that her post “is not about crying, it’s not about complaining, it’s about indignation, helplessness, sadness, and the worst part is, I can’t help him anymore, no matter how much I want to, and it’s not fair, not to him or to any of those older adults.”

The daughter points out that many have suggested leaving the island, but in her case, it’s not an option. “Honestly, it would be killing him. Old age alone, even with money, isn’t joyful; it’s painful, a lot. Loneliness hurts, even if many don’t say so, and I say this because I see it every day with several people. That’s not the solution.”

Translated by Translating Cuba.

Read more from Cuba here on Havana Times.