From Refugee to Benefactor: Daniel Llorente, "the Flag Man," Supports the Veteran Who Sheltered Him in the U.S.

In 2017, Daniel Llorente gained international attention when he stormed the May Day parade in Havana, waving the American flag and shouting "Freedom!" The image spread worldwide, and the Cuban regime responded as expected: with imprisonment, repression, and psychiatric isolation. Though labeled as "the crazy one," Llorente was simply a free man trapped on a repressive island.

After enduring such hardships, Llorente sought exile. He and his son headed to Guyana, where they spent two years surviving on the streets and taking on any available work. Eventually, in 2021, Llorente arrived in the United States, carrying a backpack full of hopes, yet without a home. He slept in his old van, parked outside overcrowded shelters, supermarkets, and industrial areas in Hillsborough County.

Then came Ralph Buran, a 69-year-old American veteran moved by Llorente's story, who offered his empty house in Spring Hill. "My house is empty for four weeks. I'm out on the road making money, so he can stay in my house," Buran told a TV station, as reported by Centro Tampa Bay.

For a year, Llorente lived with Buran, learning construction skills and securing employment. However, life took a turn when the veteran fell ill—cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and a complicated surgery after breaking his femur—forcing him to sell his home to cover medical expenses.

That's when Llorente made an unexpected move: he decided to help the man who once helped him. He paid rent for a new home for both of them, despite struggling to cover the $2,300 monthly rent and still owing part of December's payment. "He didn't ask me for anything when I needed help, remember?" Llorente stated. "Helping him isn't an obligation. It's a moral commitment and an act of gratitude. Those two reasons give me strength."

This exiled man's journey has become a touching testament to empathy. "We're like brothers from different mothers," says Buran. Despite the language barrier—one speaks Spanish and the other English—they communicate through phone translators, kitchen whiteboards, and more than just words.

Now, Llorente works renovating kitchens, installing floors, and making repairs, while sharing breakfasts with Buran—Cuban toast, coladas, or American coffee—and taking care of "Gato," the stray cat they've adopted as part of their unlikely family.

This is not the typical "successful exile" story of triumph in Miami. It's far more human, raw, and real. It's the story of someone who has experienced uprooting, persecution, and hunger, yet still chooses to give. Daniel Llorente no longer needs to wave a flag in a square to prove his defiance. His most revolutionary act today is different: supporting the man who supported him, with the same dignity he showed when confronting Cuba's tyrants.