The sweetest pleasure and the noble joy of honoring those who deserve it will be experienced this January -once again- by Cuban children on the 169th anniversary of the birth of the Apostle of Cuban Independence, José Martí.

Those who know how to love and are the hope of the world - as the Maestro described them - will be the protagonists of several activities at the José Martí Birthplace Museum, the Hispano-American Center of Culture, and the Oswaldo Guayasamín House in tribute to the National Hero.

The activities will begin on Saturday, January 15, at 10:00 a.m., at the José Martí Birthplace Museum, with the Martí's poetry interpretation contest "Verso amigo," in which children will declaim lyrical passages of the author of Versos Sencillos and La Edad de Oro (Simple Verses and The Golden Age).

Also in what is popularly known as La Casita de Martí, on Sunday 23 January, at 10:00 a.m., there will be a Children's Artistic Gala, with the presentation of the project La Colmenita, under the artistic direction of Guillermo López.

Also participating in this event will be the Romance group of children and young people, with a musical repertoire of string instruments, directed by maestro Vidal Tarín; the Solfa choir, conducted by maestro Maylán Ávila; and the clown Colorete, performed by Frank A. Pérez Aguayo. During this activity, the award ceremony of the competition Pinta mi amigo el pintor will take place.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, January 26, at 2:00 p.m., at the Hispanic American Cultural Center, an open meeting will be held with children from the community and nearby schools.

Natalia Ruíz Galiano will lead the meeting, with whom the children will be able to exchange opinions and ideas on the subject to promote the care and preservation of domestic animals and fauna in general.

A special moment will take place on Friday, January 28th, at 10:00 a.m., at the José Martí Birthplace Museum, when the Desfile Martiano de la Flor y la Bandera will take place, which is coordinated by the Municipal Education Authority, and in which the Don Mariano Martí Primary School will pay homage to Cuba's National Hero.

These events, in which children honor Martí, will close on Saturday, January 29, at 11:00 a.m., at the Casa Oswaldo Guayasamín, with the inauguration of the exhibition Dos 28 de enero, with drawings made by the members of the plastic arts workshop of the institution, directed by Zenaida Díaz, as a tribute to the birth of the author of La Edad de Oro and Ecuador's hero, Eloy Alfaro.