Help Bring Wilber Bucardo Home to His Family

Our hearts are breaking as we write this, but we are reaching out in hope and urgency to ask for help for someone who means so much to our family and community.

Wilber Bucardo was born and raised in Nicaragua. At just 19 years old, he was recruited by the San Francisco Giants to come to the United States to play minor league baseball. During his time playing for the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, our family had the honor of being his host family for three years. In that short time, we came to know Wilber as one of the kindest, most gentle, and hardworking people we have ever met—truly someone who wouldn’t hurt a fly.

We have stayed close with Wilber over the years and watched him grow into an incredible son, brother, husband, and—above all—a devoted father to two beautiful daughters.

After his baseball career ended, Wilber returned to Nicaragua to be with his wife and family and worked tirelessly to support them. As conditions in Nicaragua became increasingly unsafe due to an unstable government, Wilber and his wife made the incredibly difficult decision to seek asylum in the United States so they could protect their family and future.

They did everything the right way. Wilber contacted an immigration attorney, and our family sponsored them legally while they awaited their asylum hearing. When their paperwork was officially approved, they flew to the United States with all proper documentation.

For the past two years, Wilber and his wife have worked endlessly—supporting themselves, saving money, and sending what they could back home to their daughters, whom they were forced to leave behind temporarily until their status could be finalized. Every decision they made was centered around family, legality, and survival.

Then, tragedy struck.

Shortly after Thanksgiving, Wilber was detained by ICE while at work, despite attempting to show his approved paperwork and prove his legal status. He was taken to a detention center, where he is currently being held in appalling conditions—allowed out of his cell for only one hour per day. He has only had very limited access to the phone.

Since his detention, two separate lawyers have reviewed Wilber’s case and paperwork and have both stated that he is being detained illegally and that he is lawfully in the United States awaiting his asylum hearing. Despite this, ICE has disregarded their pleas.

We are now in a race against time.

Wilber has a federal court hearing on Monday, January 12, 2026, which will determine whether he is bonded or deported. To be bonded, $5,000 is required immediately. Without it, Wilber faces deportation to an unknown location—potentially permanent separation from his wife and the possibility of never seeing his daughters again.

We are urgently raising funds to:

Retain a federal immigration lawyer to represent Wilber at his hearing

Pay for bond ($5,000)

Cover ongoing and future legal fees

Wilber is not a criminal. He is a father, a husband, a former professional athlete, and a man who followed the law every step of the way. No family should be torn apart like this—especially not one that did everything they were told to do correctly.

If you are able to donate, any amount helps. If you can’t, please consider sharing this fundraiser so it reaches the people who can.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for standing with Wilber and his family during this unimaginable time.