A LETTER FROM CUBA

“We Do Not Know What

We Will Eat Tomorrow.”

Yesterday morning, OAA received a letter from a widowed mother in Cuba.

Her words offer an intimate glimpse into what the country's worsening economic and humanitarian conditions mean inside one Cuban home.

“We literally lack the strength to care for and feed [our children] as they deserve and need.”

— From a letter received by OAA from Cuba, August 2026

She describes a family weakened by inadequate nutrition, struggling to afford transportation and medicine, and sometimes afraid to leave home because they fear fainting from physical exhaustion.

Her testimony is deeply personal. But new data suggests it is far from isolated.

THE NUMBERS BEHIND HER STORY

The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights' (OCDH) newly released 2026 Report on the State of Social Rights in Cuba provides a broader picture of the conditions described in her letter.

The report surveyed 1,318 adults through in-person interviews across 79 municipalities in every province of Cuba, including Isla de la Juventud.

1,318 in-person interviews | 79 municipalities | Every province of Cuba

These findings help place one family's testimony within a much broader reality affecting households across the island.

READ THE FULL 2026 REPORT

Every statistic represents a person, a family, and a story.

Photo: Joe Griffis Smith

FAITH IN THE MIDST OF UNCERTAINTY

What stayed with us most was how she ended her letter:

“We do not know what we will eat tomorrow or in the coming days, but we continue to trust in God.”

— From Cuba, August 2026

Even amid extraordinary uncertainty, her letter is filled with faith—not only prayers for her own family, but gratitude for those who continue to pray and act on behalf of the Cuban people.

FROM PRAYER TO ACTION

At Outreach Aid to the Americas, our longstanding relationships with faith leaders and civil society networks across Cuba allow us to respond to vulnerable communities facing tremendous need while advancing human dignity, religious freedom, and community resilience.

“We thank God for everyone who prays, cries out, and takes action to help us.”

Her words leave us with a simple invitation:

Pray. Speak. Act.

Your support helps OAA continue reaching communities in Cuba through trusted local networks and expanding efforts to provide humanitarian assistance where it is needed most.

SUPPORT OAA'S WORK IN CUBA

Faith calls us not only to listen, but to respond.