Amistadito Children's Aid
Meet Amistadito, the mascot of the Amistad con Cuba Foundation
Amistadito, the little bird that cannot fly 🐦
Amistadito is a small, round, fluffy bird with tiny little wings. So small you can barely see them!
He has a Dutch dad and a Cuban mum.
He learned from his dad to wait his turn politely, to arrive on time, and sometimes to be a bit stubborn.
He learns to sing, dance, and give very big hugs from his mum.
Amistadito loves good food. Today they are having rice with chicken and beans, and yesterday they had kale with smoked sausage. That’s the advantage of having a Cuban mum and a Dutch dad. But the downside is that Amistadito’s tummy is getting quite round…
Amistadito has a small problem: he thinks he's a brilliant flyer. After all, all little birds think that…
On a sunny morning, he climbed onto a little wall, puffed out his chest, spread his little wings and shouted very bravely: “Look out world! Here comes Amistaditoooo!”
He jumped…
He fluttered…
He wobbled…
He turned a bit…
And then…
BOOM! 😵💥
There he lay again. On his soft, round tummy.
“Maybe tomorrow,” squeaked Amistadito.
Because giving up? He never does.
The next day, he tried again.
This time he climbed onto a tree stump.
“Now I'm really going to fly!”
Jump!
Flatter!
Wrapper!
Wobble!
SPLAT! BANG! THUMP!
Right into a pile of bananas. 🍌🍌🍌
The children had to laugh.
In a friendly way too.
Just yesterday, just before dinner. Mum and Dad had already set the table.
Despite herself, Amistadito thought: “I'll hop up there smoothly and gracefully!”
He took a run-up...
Hop!
Hup!
Little jump!
But he jumped just a bit too far…
And instead of on the table...
PLOOP! 🍲😵
...he landed right in the middle of a big bowl of hot soup.
Only its small beak was still sticking out.
The children shouted, laughing:
“Friendship! You're not a bird, you're a soup hen!” 😂
Amistadito shook itself, snorted, sneezed…
“PFFFLOOP!”
…and soup droplets flew everywhere. 😄
Yet Amistadito never gets angry.
Perhaps he can't fly very well...
And maybe he is a bit clumsy…
But he can do something very special.
He's making friends. ❤️
He tells jokes.
Songs.
Cuddles.
And wherever Amistadito goes... everyone has to laugh.
And so the small, fluffy, slightly clumsy bird becomes...
The most beloved friend of children in the Netherlands and Cuba. 🇳🇱❤️🇨🇺
And sometimes... very sometimes...
when no one's looking
then he might fly just a tiny bit.
‘At night, when he sleeps. In his dreams…
PLOINK! 😄💚
End. 🐦✨
Friendly little bird (Peep peep)
Will you sing along?
Friendly relation, dear friend, who sings us cheerful songs. With a heart so warm and happy, Brings he friendship close to me.
Friendship, faithful friend, brings joy like honey.
With love and a big heart, Spread friendship to every corner.
Amistadito Children's Aid
Create a friendship package for children in Cuba
With Amistadito Kinderhulp, we want to give children in Cuba a small moment of joy, care and warmth. Many children grow up with limited access to clothing, vitamins and toys. With a simple friendship package, you can directly contribute to their well-being and smiles.
We ask that parcels be put together by age category:
0 – 2 years
Think of:
* Clean baby clothes
Baby grows
Socks
Baby bonnets
Comforter or small soft toy
A pot or box of vitamin (tablets/drops) suitable for babies and young children
Child 3 – 7 years
Think of:
Clean children's clothing
T-shirts
Panties
Underwear
* Small light toys (e.g. toy car, doll, coloured pencils, small puzzle)
A pot or box of vitamin (pills) suitable for children
Backpack 8 – 11 years
Think of:
Clean clothes
School supplies
Little writings
Pens
Small toy or craft supplies
A pot or box of vitamin (pills) suitable for children
Important
The goods may be new or second-hand, but we kindly ask that:
* delivered clean
* whole and useful
* to keep it small and light for transport to Cuba
This way we can reach as many children as possible.
Delivery address:
Stichting Amistad con Cuba
Chopinstraat 34
8031 ZK Zwolle
The Netherlands
With every parcel, we send not only items, but above all something much greater: friendship, hope, and dignity.
Friendship changes lives.
Amistadito, the badger with the pink cheeks
High up in a blossoming cherry tree lived Amistadito, a little bird, white as a cloud, with a shiny yellow beak and cheeks so pink they looked like two petals.
Amistadito had a sad secret: he couldn't fly. But he also had a special gift: he was a huge, huge foodie!
While the other birds glided through the air, he walked across the forest floor with his short legs. He sniffed, searched, discovered… and always found the very tastiest food!
— A good little chat, with a full belly again! — Lía, his squirrel friend, laughed.
— I've found a bush full of raspberries! — he replied, with a beak smeared red and cheeks that had turned even rosier with delight.
One day a storm came that was so fierce that nests fell from the trees and all the food was hidden. The birds flew far away, but Amistadito could not follow them. Trembling, he sought shelter under a large mushroom.
When the storm had passed, the forest was sad. Everyone was hungry.
— Where will we find food? — piped the young birds, crying.
But Amistadito, with his ever-hungry tummy and his sharp nose, remembered a secret spot: an old hollow log where he had hidden nuts, dried berries, and other treats he had saved because he was, well... a glutton!
"Friends, follow me!" he squeaked loudly.
Step by step, he led everyone to the hidden treasure.
"See?" said Lía, hugging him with her fluffy tail. "The fact that you can't fly is precisely what has made you special. You see things that others don't, because they fly too high.".
Amistadito smiled, puffed out his rosy cheeks, and shared every crumb with his friends.
From that day on, everyone called him “Amistadito, the glutton with the generous heart.” And although he never learned to fly, he did learn to fly in another way: in the love and appreciation of everyone around him.
Sometimes those who walk the earth... go further than anyone else.
And from that day on, whenever someone felt different or thought they weren't as capable as the others, the animals of the forest would tell the story of Amistadito.
The little bird that couldn't fly.
The little bird with the pink cheeks.
The greedy little bird that always found something tasty to share.
Amistadito taught them that true friendship doesn't mean being the fastest, the strongest, or the one who flies the highest.
True friendship means sharing what you have and helping others when they need it most.
And so Amistadito smiled every evening, as the sun disappeared behind the trees, from his favourite branch.
With a full stomach.
With rosy cheeks.
And with a heart that was even fuller.
