A CUBAN family have said they are “eternally indebted” to the Scots who donated more than £12,000 so a mother with cancer could see her kids again.
Heidy Solano was diagnosed with cancer more than six months ago and doctors advised her not to travel from her home in Falkirk.
This meant she was unable to see her two kids who could not afford the flights over to Scotland from Cuba.
But following a successful fundraiser, the family were reunited and 23-year-old Glenda Flores Solano and 18-year-old Felix Daniel Flores Solano were able to see their parents for the first time in years.
READ MORE: JustGiving fundraiser aims to reunite Cuban family in Falkirk after cancer diagnosis
Solano’s husband Felix Flores Varona said the kids have helped immeasurably with the health and mood of their mother.
The University of Stirling academic said the success of the fundraiser was a “triumph of love” and thanked generous Scots for turning their life around.
Varona told The National: “I have not seen my kids in almost three years so it was very emotional.
“For my wife, she was very depressed just thinking that she would never see them again. Since they came everything has changed, her attitude, her spirits, her disposition to keep on living and doing things like eating well.
“The presence of the kids here has kept my wife going. She is taking care of herself. Before the kids came she was like a candle in the wind and all of a sudden there’s no wind.
“She has more energy and we are just so thankful for our friends and organisers of the fundraiser because otherwise things would have been very different for us.
“I can’t imagine the trauma for our kids to be on their own in Cuba and us on our own here. It would have been terrible.”
Felix said he was grateful for all those who donated to the fundraiser, which started off with a goal of £10,000 but was shortly surpassed, reaching more than £12,000.
He said: “We are very thankful and very grateful for what they have done for us because it has dramatically changed our situation. It has given life to my wife and we will be eternally indebted to them because everything has been different since the children have been with us.”
Their daughter Glenda said it was “surreal” to see their mother again – an event she didn’t think would happen.
“After we arrived, I was really relieved,” she said. “Because at one point I thought we wouldn't be able to come. But I was very happy when we came and we saw her.
“We didn't have the means to come so when I saw friends of my dad's helping us I had faith we could come. We had a lot of problems and setbacks but eventually we made it and I was relieved.
“At the beginning it felt surreal. Now we're doing everything we can to be there with her and support her.”
Asked what she would say to those who donated to the fundraiser, she said: “I would say thank you very much. You have helped our family a lot. We can never repay you for that. But we'll be forever thankful for what you did for us.”
Glenda and her brother arrived on February 6 and their visas are set to expire in July, although Felix is hoping to extend them so they can see their mum through her illness.
READ MORE: 'We're closer than you can imagine': Hidden links between Cuba and Scotland unearthed
He said: “The kids have influenced my wife’s health in a positive way. She has been on treatment and things are going well. But it was thanks to the attitude of so many people.
“My kids came because of this humanitarian path so I am hoping the Home Office will be humanitarian enough to allow them to stay with their mum until the final consequences.”
Solano said: "I very much appreciate the effort that was made by both the organizers, our friends, and the general public.
“I especially thank The National for their contribution. I really never imagined the presence here of my kids was going to be possible."
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