CAMAGÜEY.- Very few imagine that the blue scarf that children wear around their necks on October 8, as a symbol that they are starting out as pioneers, will mark them so much; that they will begin their journey through an organization with rebellious roots and Martí's essences, and that as happened to many of us, when our time to belong to it is running out, we want to continue being proud pioneers.

That may be the key of the José Martí Pioneers Organization (OPJM) to transcend so many generations, our parents, we and our children, we have all proudly said that, that more than a slogan it is and has to be a way of acting: “Pioneers for communism. We will be like Che ”.

There we learned to salute the flag and show that collective interests are above individual ones, to show respect for symbols, our heroes and martyrs, that the first duty is to study, which is the basis for later doing things well wherever we are, to tie and untie knots and to be ready for life in the field.

Being a pioneer, you learn to have rights and duties, to demand and comply with them, to debate, both with the school director and with the highest leadership in the country, to express concerns, and make proposals to them. Those little details make big differences and make the OPJM unique in the world.

It reaches its sixtieth birthday with the same joy as its own, without losing the naturalness of the children and, above all, representing its more than 90,000 members in the province, in a year marked by an illness that also modified school routines and sent the students home. The group, the face-to-face classes, the morning classes, the contests, the camping are missed; however, they have not ceased to be pioneers.

So says Lauren Varona Reyes, pioneer of the Renato Guitart school. “We are doing many activities from home to celebrate the 60th anniversary, because COVID-19 cannot prevent us from celebrating our birthday. In addition, we study through teleclasses, and we help with housework, although the classroom, the teachers, my classmates, and the activities we do are always missed ”.

Ana Paula Acosta Tan, eighth grade pioneer and president of the Noel Fernández junior high school collective, described 2020 as a difficult year: “We have looked for ways to stay united, thanks to technologies, which have also helped us to deepen our knowledge and that do not stop the teaching-educational process. We take care of ourselves and maintain confidence in Cuban science to get out of this situation ”. Ana Paula was the pioneer who would represent Camagüey children and adolescents in the 11th Congress of the Young Communist League, suspended due to the complex epidemiological situation.

Eric Damián Portales Sáez, a ninth-grade pioneer at the Mártires de Camagüey school, dreams of entering the Camilo Cienfuegos military school, and for that, the Organization has prepared him. “I have little time left as a pioneer, but I will always remember the activities, the contests, that although I have not won, the important thing has been to participate; the camping trips and the pioneer explorers movement, which have taught me a lot, and I hope it will serve me in the future ”.

Also in ninth grade, in the "Mártires de Camagüey", almost saying goodbye to pioneer life is Samanda Gamboa Leyva. She says she takes many memories of the organization that has hosted her since she was six years old. “In the activities that took place inside and outside the school, I was always there, I loved participating, directing and organizing many of them, so much so that this year I have missed it. We have had to leave active life behind due to the pandemic, but we continue to communicate with our colleagues, we study with the support of the family ”.

For Samanda it is a privilege to live this anniversary. “Sixty years is a long time, thanks to the Revolution we have an organization that cares about us, because we are happy, gives us participation in important events in the country, and demands that we be listened to. I hope that it will have many more years and that even if I am not there, I will always follow up and be at its disposal ”.

And yes, that happens with the OPJM, it penetrates so deeply in each one of its members that you continue to be a pioneer throughout life, even if you no longer uses a blue or red scarf, although you no longer wears a badge. That is the key to being the first for sixty years.

Translated by Linet Acuña Quilez