Lala Mooney, mother of Congressman Alex Mooney, was born in communist Cuba and raised with 13 other siblings. On the day of the Bay of Pigs invasion on April 17, 1961, Fidel Castro executed a mass imprisonment movement where approximately 100,000 innocent Cubans were held as political prisoners, Lala as one of them. After two months, Lala and her siblings were released and invited to find refuge in the United States. Lala Mooney's book, "Leaving Cuba: One Family's Journey to Freedom," is a testament to her family's perseverance and strength under communist rule.

Lala Mooney gave this presentation at the November 2019 Conservative Women's Network luncheon, a monthly event co-sponsored by The Heritage Foundation and CBL Center for Conservative Women.