A UPS driver went viral after his wife filmed him opening his first paycheck in the United States. Yoel Díaz told CBS News that he was very excited because he could barely fill his refrigerator before emigrating from Cuba.
He said that sometimes he only had two things: “Water, water, water, five, ten eggs, water.”
She now lives in Phoenix, Arizona, and her refrigerator is full. With the holidays approaching, he told CBS News that he is “grateful” to be in the US.
“I know it’s hard,” he said. “I know because you need a job. You need to work, it’s hard… but in the end, you go home, you have food.”
The endearing video of him showing off his first paycheck has millions of views, with his “American dream” moment resonating with Americans and immigrants alike. His wife, Marissa Diaz, who has been documenting his trip on social media, recorded the video.
“This is my first hourly paycheck and I feel like every hour counts,” he said in the video. “That every hour of work is important in my life and that I know that I can work hard for something. I can’t compare that emotion to anything. Because I never had that in my country.”
He told CBS News it’s a moment he’ll never forget.
“When you first get this, your head explodes and you’re like, ‘Wow, that’s beautiful,'” he said.
Before coming to the US in 2021, Díaz was a computer science teacher in Cuba earning $12 a month. He lamented how far down the field the United States was.
Díaz met his wife, who is Cuban-American, when they were young and still living in Cuba. He often told her about the realities outside of Cuba, which he believed his Communist Party repressed. They eventually got married and faced a decision: stay or go to the US.
Diaz said he told his wife: “We want a future, we want a family… where you go I go.”
He came to the United States on a K-1 visa, and when he received his work permit, he applied for a job with UPS. The company told CBS News that it started in late October and has been making deliveries ever since.
The CEO of UPS even sent him a letter and a care box.
“This story truly warms our hearts and we are happy to have Yoel on our team,” a UPS spokesperson said in a statement.
Díaz earns more than ever in Cuba, but for him it is about more than that.
“I never had so much money in my hands from my effort, from my sweat, and it hurts me that millions in my country and in other countries cannot have that,” he said. “And being here, you can get it in a dignified way.”
Editor’s Note: The article previously had Yoel and Marissa’s last name as Garcia. His last name is Diaz.
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Source: news.google.com