Cuban culture and support for unaccompanied minors

By Andoni Biurrarena - Archdiocese of Miami

MIAMI | St. Mary Cathedral served as the setting for a vibrant celebration of Cuban culture during Havana Nights, the annual fundraiser benefiting Catholic Charities’ Unaccompanied Minors Program of the Archdiocese of Miami.

More than 200 guest, clergy, and community members, as well as Archbishop Thomas Wenski, gathered March 26, 2026, in the cathedral’s rectory courtyard to celebrate the 13th annual event.

The evening featured live entertainment, along with dominoes, cigars, mojitos, and traditional Cuban cuisine.

“It was a great evening to reconnect with friends, smoke a few ‘puros’ and play dominoes,” said Archbishop Wenski.

Havana Nights raised $28,800 this year to support Catholic Charities’ Unaccompanied Minors Program, which provides shelter and care for unaccompanied children while their immigration cases are being processed.

Organized by the Development Office of the Archdiocese of Miami, the annual fundraising event supports a mission that began with Msgr. Bryan O. Walsh, who led Operation Pedro Pan in the early 1960s. This operation brought 14,000 unaccompanied children to the United States as they flew the Fidel Castro regime in Cuba.

“We greatly appreciate the support of the Development Office, which organizes this event every year, and especially the support of the archbishop,” said Peter Routsis-Arroyo, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami.

“Havana Nights signifies the commitment that the archbishop and Catholic Charities have to the well-being of children who enter our country without their parents due to violence and political unrest in their native countries,” said Routsis-Arroyo.

“It's the longest-running program in the entire United States,” and has been helping minors for more than 60 years, explained Routsis-Arroyo.

For Katie Blanco Bourdeau, president of the archdiocese’s Development Corporation; “Havana Nights is more than a celebration—it’s a powerful expression of our community coming together to support vulnerable children and ensure they receive the care, dignity, and hope they deserve.”

Taste of Cuba

For many, the event brought back nostalgic memories of the Cuba of yesteryear.

For George Gutierrez, president of Knights on Bikes Florida, Havana Nights is more than a fundraiser — it’s personal.

“I’m American, but my parents are Cuban — that’s our heritage, and we’re proud of it,” he said, as he spent the evening smoking cigars and playing dominoes alongside fellow riders. “It’s a nice night to reconnect with our roots.”

Like many in attendance, Gutierrez sees the event as both a celebration and a mission. For the past five years, he and other members of Knights on Bikes have supported Havana Nights, answering what he describes as a direct call from the archbishop.

“It’s an important event that raises money for a noble cause,” he said. “The archbishop asks us to come, and we always support him.”

That sense of purpose echoes the deeper meaning behind the evening. For many guests, the music, food, and traditions stirred memories of Cuba left behind decades ago. Some attendees were among the Pedro Panes.

A mission to protect vulnerable children

More than a celebration of Cuban heritage, Havana Nights is ultimately about its mission — raising critical funds for Catholic Charities’ Unaccompanied Minors Program.

For Carmela Beltran-Brito, parishioner of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Miami, that mission is deeply personal. Among the event’s leading supporters, she and her family have backed the fundraiser for years, “It’s an important mission, very dear to our hearts — the children,” said Beltran-Brito.

“We have supported this event for many years because we truly believe in it.”“We want to support the mission of the Church and the archdiocese,” Beltran-Brito added. “This program that helps children is truly amazing.”

Like the thousands of Cuban children aided through Operation Pedro Pan decades ago, Catholic Charities continues to care for unaccompanied minors at the Msgr. Bryan O. Walsh Children’s Village — formerly known as Boys Town in southern Miami-Dade County.

There, children — most arriving from Central America after difficult journeys across the southern border — are provided with shelter, education, health care, and emotional support while their immigration cases are processed.

Alexis Céspedes, a retired employee of Msgr. Bryan O. Walsh Children’s Village traveled several times to the border with Mexico to pick up unaccompanied minors as part of the program dedicated to family reunification.

Céspedes recalls the case of a child who was separated from his family in Mexico and crossed the border at age 4. The child arrived at the shelter few years later. “When he was reunited with his mother, he would tell me, ‘Dad, no’ — he didn’t recognize her. To him, I was his father.”

“We had children from India. When they grew up, they would take me to their Hindu temple. I was a father figure to them, and they had great respect for me,” Céspedes explained.

“Other children from the Dominican Republic would tell me I was their father. They would say, ‘Thanks to the advice you gave me, I’ve been able to integrate into the U.S.,’” he said.

In 2016-2017, around 75,000 unaccompanied minors entered through the southern border. At that time, the Homestead Air Reserve Base was opened to house them.

“At that moment, we had 83 unaccompanied minors at the center — we were at full capacity,” Céspedes said.

“The Catholic Charities Unaccompanied Minors Program is the longest continuous running program in the country, dating back to 1960 with Operation Pedro Pan. Support is needed now more than ever as the future of the program is in doubt because of federal cutbacks in funding and ongoing changes in immigration,” said Routsis-Arroyo. 

Today’s unaccompanied minors are given not only care, but stability — a chance to heal, grow, and eventually reunite with their families.