A Hug After 10 Years: Help Me Reunite with My Mom

A Hug After 10 Years: Help Me Reunite with My Mom

My name is Yury Zerpa, I’m Venezuelan and have been living in Costa Rica for almost 10 years. To be honest, I’m currently in a very emotionally difficult situation. I am an only child, and just a few weeks ago my mother, who lives alone in Venezuela, suffered a work accident. She is going through a very delicate time and has no one to care for her.

That is why I created this GoFundMe campaign: to reach the hearts of mothers, fathers, children, and migrants who understand the pain of forced distance and the emptiness of a family separated by political, social, and economic circumstances. Today, I am asking for your help so I can reunite with my mother after a decade without seeing her.

How it all started…

I left Venezuela on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2015, alone, with my two little girls who were only 3 and 2 years old. The flight from Caracas to San José was short, but the journey to reach our destination was long and full of uncertainty. The father of my daughters was already in Costa Rica and was waiting for us with a place to stay. Since that early Tuesday morning, I have not physically seen my mother again.

We have stayed in touch, but coffee afternoons and family gatherings disappeared like the wind. My daughters grew up without grandparents. Video calls cannot replace the smell of grandma’s freshly baked cake or the stories shared after a family meal.

My eldest daughter still holds small memories of how her grandmother would prepare her favorite snacks. In 2018, my third daughter was born, and one of my dreams was always for my mom to come and meet her while she was still a baby. But the situation in Venezuela became so critical that neither she could leave, nor could I save up enough money to bring her here.

My path as a mother and migrant....

Three and a half years ago, I separated from the father of my daughters. Since then, I’ve been a single mother to three girls, now 13, 12, and 6 years old. I do not receive any financial support from their father. Despite the challenges, I haven’t given up. I have pursued my professional development, work independently, and this year I managed to obtain residency for myself and my two eldest daughters — a huge step that took great effort and left me in debt.

However, time keeps passing… and my mother, alone and recovering from her accident, can’t wait any longer. Neither can I. And my daughters, even less so.

My youngest daughter, who has never met her grandmother in person, tells me sweetly that she dreams of seeing her. My heart breaks when she asks me when that will be. How do I explain that she still can’t?

Why is it so complicated to bring my mother?...

Several years ago, Costa Rica and Venezuela broke diplomatic relations, which means Venezuelans must travel to Colombia to apply for a Costa Rican visa. This makes the process much more complicated and significantly increases the travel costs.

These are how the funds raised in this fundraiser will be used:

Phase 1: Visa application, processing fees, and required documents: $600

Phase 2:

• ✈️ Round-trip ticket Venezuela–Colombia: $1,200

• 1-week stay in Colombia while waiting for the visa: $700

Phase 3 – The Reunion:

• ✈️ Round-trip ticket Colombia–Costa Rica: $800

• Transportation within Costa Rica (San José – Santa Teresa de Cóbano, round trip): $250

Estimated total: $3,550 USD

(Flight prices vary depending on purchase date and the visa appointment schedule in Colombia.)

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. If you can donate, I will be eternally grateful. And if you can’t, sharing this campaign is also a great help. This is not just a reunion between a mother and daughter — it is giving my daughters the chance to experience their grandmother’s love, and giving my mom the relief of not feeling alone.

“Being a mother has made me strong, but being a daughter reminds me of what I still long for.”

Please help me make our reunion possible.

Thank you, thank you, thank you

With love,

Yury