They had lots of luggage but not much for themselves.
When Reg Walters, partner Barb McKinnon and two children went to Cuba on spring break, they carried their own belonging in carry-on bags.
But they also checked four large bags of baseball equipment to give away in the island country that has long suffered sanctions and severe economic conditions.
Walters lived in Cuba for a year when he was 19 and well remembers the people and their circumstances. He was the first Canadian to attend university in Havana after Fidel Castro seized power in 1959.
Walters made his first return trip in 2001 with several other families and loads of baseball equipment that was delivered to children in Santa Marta, a town about 40 minutes from Havana.
“It was really grim there because the Russians had stopped giving them free oil and the economy was really tight,” he says. “We watched kids practise with no footwear, no gear. Four of them might have had gloves and the balls they were playing with were string.”
The travellers arrived unannounced, opened up their rented van and handed out gear to unsuspecting children, who, along with their retired national baseball player coach, were elated.
On another trip 12 years ago, Walters returned with a lot of second-hand equipment donated by Salmon Arm Minor Baseball.
“Two years ago, we had a fundraiser at home and raised about $1,000, and Chevy (Kevin Cheveldave) donated a bunch of stuff and sold the rest to us at a 40 per cent discount,” he says. “We sent a bunch of new gloves and shoes and other stuff to a school in Havana with Brent Moffat’s family in January 2013 and took a whole bunch more in April of that year.”
This year, Walters and McKinnon bought about $600 worth of new equipment and got a wealth of good gear courtesy of the North Delta Minor Baseball Association.
This year’s destination was Puerto Esperanza, a traditional fishing village on the western tip of Cuba, where they unloaded seven full sets of catchers’ gear, 20 bats, 70 balls, batting helmets, umpire’s gear and a few pairs of shoes.
Walters says baseball is a passion in Cuba where the national team finished second behind Japan for the second year in a row in the World Baseball Classic.
“In Salmon Arm if you wanted to play, you paid and you played,” he said. “In Cuba it’s not like that; they play in the street and if they’re interested and talented, they go to a baseball academy team.”
Walters says he will be looking at making another trip to Cuba in a couple of years. In the meantime, he says he has a load of gear ready to go. If anyone is travelling to Cuba and is interested in taking equipment with them, they can get in touch with Walters at regwaltersbc@hotmail.com.
Walters says Canadian tourists to Cuba hit the one million mark this year. He also points out Kelowna Airport is planning to offer direct flights to the island country.