WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 30, 2026--
MightyMeals CEO and Executive Chef Stefano Marzano recently reunited with Dr. Marijean Miller of Children’s National Hospital, the ophthalmologist who treated him from infancy through age 18 after he was born blind—a moment that brought his personal journey and professional mission full circle.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260325794473/en/
With the care he received at Children’s National, Marzano ultimately gained vision and now sees 20/20 with glasses. The reunion, held at Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus, marked the first time the two had seen each other in years.
“Children’s National is the reason I have my vision today,” said Marzano. “Dr. Miller was with me from when I was three months old all the way through adulthood. Reconnecting with her was incredibly meaningful—it reminded me how much of my life started here.”
That experience has directly shaped Marzano’s commitment to giving back through MightyMeals. Over the past decade, the company has donated hundreds of thousands of meals to local food pantries and charitable organizations across the region.
As MightyMeals celebrated its 10-year anniversary, Marzano sought to deepen that impact through a more focused initiative—launching a partnership with Children’s National Hospital to help address childhood food insecurity.
Through the partnership, MightyMeals is providing ongoing meal support to families served through Children’s National’s Community Pediatric Health programs, which extend care beyond hospital walls into underserved communities. The initiative includes regularly scheduled meal distributions—providing both lunches and dinners—to help ensure families have access to consistent, nutritious food.
“We’ve built this company over the last 10 years, and when we hit that milestone, I knew we needed to do something more impactful,” Marzano said. “This is my way of giving back. If it wasn’t for Children’s National, I wouldn’t be here—and MightyMeals wouldn’t exist.”
Children’s National Hospital, a nationally recognized pediatric leader, emphasizes the importance of addressing both medical and social determinants of health. Access to nutritious meals plays a critical role in a child’s development, recovery and overall well-being.
“It’s an honor to work with Children’s National and everyone here,” Marzano added. “Dr. Miller gave me my vision back. She was always so nurturing—it felt like having a second mom. Being able to come back and give back in this way means everything.”
Through its mission to help individuals Choose Healthy. Live Mighty., MightyMeals continues to combine culinary innovation with meaningful community outreach—ensuring that as the company grows, so does its ability to support the communities that helped shape it.
The reunion between Marzano and Dr. Miller highlights the lasting impact of care—and the ripple effect it can create years later.
HAVANA (AP) — Cuba prepared on Monday to receive a sanctioned Russian tanker carrying roughly 730,000 barrels of oil, marking the island’s first such delivery this year.
It comes a day after U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he had “no problem” with a Russian oil tanker delivering relief to the island, which has been brought to its knees by a U.S. oil blockade.
The exact location of the Russian-flagged Anatoly Kolodkin remained a subject of conflicting reports Monday morning. While the Russian Transport Ministry and the state-run news portal Cubadebate stated the vessel had already arrived, ship-tracking data showed it was still navigating Cuban waters with an estimated docking time of Tuesday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday Russia had previously discussed its oil shipment to Cuba with the United States. “Russia сonsiders it its duty not to stand aside, but to provide the necessary assistance to our Cuban friends,” he told reporters.
Its final destination is the port of Matanzas, a strategic hub for an island that produces barely 40% of its required fuel and relies on such imports to sustain its energy grid. Experts say the anticipated shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel, enough to feed Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days.
Trump, whose government has come at its Caribbean adversary more aggressively than any U.S. government in recent history, has effectively cut Cuba off from key oil shipments in an effort to force regime change. The blockade has had devastating effects on the civilians Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio say they want to help, leaving many desperate.
Islandwide blackouts have roiled Cubans already grappling with years of crisis, and a lack of gasoline and basic resources has crippled hospitals and slashed public transport.
For years, Mexico sent oil to Cuba in a sign of solidarity as the island struggled with an energy crisis, but it was effectively forced to halt these shipments under the threat of U.S. tariffs. In their place, Mexico pivoted to sending humanitarian aid, including food and hygiene products.
Asked during her Monday news briefing about Trump's comments on allowing the Russian vessel through, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that her country will continue sending aid and that “work was underway" with Cuban authorities to trade oil in the future.
Sheinbaum, who has walked a fine line with Trump to offset threats of tariffs and military action against cartels, provided few details.
She noted that private companies in Cuba, including hotels, “are looking for private entities willing to supply them with fuel,” and that they have approached Mexico's state-owned oil company to purchase crude oil, adding that these requests are currently being reviewed.
Cuba has long been at the heart of a geopolitical tug-of-war between the U.S. and Russia, dating back decades. Trump on Sunday dismissed the idea that allowing the boat to reach Cuba would help Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It doesn’t help him. He loses one boatload of oil, that’s all it is. If he wants to do that, and if other countries want to do it, it doesn’t bother me much,” Trump said on Sunday. “It’s not going to have an impact. Cuba’s finished. They have a bad regime. They have very bad and corrupt leadership and whether or not they get a boat of oil, it’s not going to matter.”
The U.S., the European Union and the United Kingdom sanctioned multiple vessels, including the Anatoly Kolodkin, used to carry Russian oil following the war in Ukraine.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
A quinceanera rides in a vintage car during her birthday celebration in Havana, Cuba, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
One of two sailboats carrying humanitarian aid organized by activists with an international organization that departed from Mexico arrives in Havana, Cuba, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
