The Bob Graham Center for Public Service provides a wide variety of programs for students and the larger public on topics related to public service, public leadership and civic engagement.
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Cuban Footprints: A Journey Back in Time
January 24 @ 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
This captivating program, recorded at the Bob Graham Center in Pugh Hall, features double-Gator and renowned Florida architect Mario Cartaya as he explores the intricate relationship between Cuba and the United States, delving into the lives of Island Cubans and Cuban-Americans caught in the crossfire.
He is the author of “Journey Back Into The Vault. In Search of My Faded Cuban Childhood Footprints” (2022), an account of his return visit to Cuba for the first time in 56 years.
Embark with Mr. Cartaya on the emotional journey of a Cuban-born American as he returns to Cuba after 56 years, seeking to reclaim lost memories and reunite with the family left behind. It’s a remarkable exploration of identity, reconciliation, and inner peace.
Cartaya was born in 1951 into a middle class family living in Havana, Cuba. Eight years later, as Castro’s Revolution swept over the country, he and his family immigrated to Florida and began the process of adaptation and metamorphosis into the new culture, language, customs, and idiosyncrasies of the U.S.
Cartaya attended the University of Florida College of Design, Construction and Planning, earning a bachelor of architecture degree in 1974 and a masters in building construction with high honors from UF in 1975.
In 1979 he founded Cartaya and Associates Architects PA , the acclaimed Fort Lauderdale firm he headed for 43 years until his retirement in 2022. The firm’s work can be seen throughout Broward County and south Florida in more than 100 schools and public buildings, including the Fort Lauderdale International Airport and the Broward County Judicial Complex, as well several additions and renovations for many hospitals and health care facilities in the area.
Cartaya served 15 years as chair of Sen. Bob Graham’s Air Force and Naval Academies selection committees, and was appointed by Florida Governor Lawton Chiles to the Broward College District Board of Trustees. He also helped President Bill Clinton in writing his initial Cuba policy, and assisted President Barack Obama with development of his rapprochement visit to Cuba in 2014.
He now resides in Gainesville, Fla., and devotes his creative energies to writing and lecturing.
His talk was sponsored by the Bob Graham Center and the University of Florida College of Design, Construction and Planning.