Jose "Pepin" Almeida is an unlikely hero. He never acted in the movies, never threw the winning pass, never sat in high office. Even his involvement in the event that u-turned his life, the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961, failed and became a national embarrassment.He laments, "We were in a helpless and hopeless situation." But Pepin Almeida soon, out of necessity, created his own hope. Denied all tangible things- clothes, family, food, he discovered his soul, his only true possession.