Keep Alexandria's Family Together

CBS NEWS SEGMENT

9 NEWS SEGMENT

DENVER 7 NEWS SEGMENT

KFOX NEWS SEGMENT

Please share

Hi everyone,

I never thought I’d be in this position — writing something so personal, asking for help just to keep our family above water. But here I am, doing everything I can to hold it together for the sake of our daughter and the man we love.

On June 10th, my husband — a kind, hard-working man with no criminal record — was unexpectedly detained by ICE.

What makes this even more devastating is that we’ve been trying to do everything right.

We’ve been following the legal process for years.

My husband came to the U.S seeking political asylum.

He has a valid work permit.

We are legally married.

I am U.S.-born, and so is our 2-year-old daughter.

We’ve been showing up to every appointment, turning in every document, staying in communication with immigration. We’ve never tried to cut corners.

At his most recent ICE check-in just three weeks ago, everything went fine. They even scheduled his next appointment for November. We had every reason to believe that things were stable — that we were doing exactly what we were supposed to. And then out of nowhere, without any warning or explanation, everything changed.

I was at work when my phone started blowing up. I didn’t think much of it… until my husband somehow got a message to me: he was being detained. He had gone to check out a house for a side renovation job — something he does to support our family — and as he parked, three unmarked cars swarmed in, blocked him off, and took him away in handcuffs. All that force… for one man. A man with no record. A man who has never been a threat to anyone.

I don’t know if they followed him from our home. All I know is I’m grateful our daughter didn’t witness it. But the trauma remains. He was ripped away from us like a criminal, when all he’s ever done is try to provide for his family and follow the law.

They didn’t have a warrant. They gave us no warning. No justification. And for a long, terrifying time, we had no idea where he was being taken.

I finally got a two-minute phone call with him — just enough time to say “I love you” before the call dropped. I wait everyday with my phone on, volume turned up all the way just in case he calls so I can hear him speak. I no longer have the simple privilege of picking up the phone to tell him about my day — something so many of us take for granted.

A few days later, I was able to visit him with our two-year-old daughter, hoping she’d be able to hug her dad — and instead, we were separated by a thick pane of glass, talking through a phone. It shattered me. I couldn’t wrap my arms around my husband, couldn’t kiss him, couldn’t feel him one last time. All I could do was press my hand against a cold glass window, watching the man I love sit on the other side — and there was nothing I could do to bring him back to us.

He is being held in a cell with four other people. He has limited phone access, no way to get updates about his case other than sending a letter out of the facility to ICE and waiting for a response. Meanwhile, we’re left in the dark, scared and struggling, being punished for doing the right thing.

To make things even harder, Father’s Day just passed, and he wasn’t even allowed a phone call. His car is still in our driveway, and every time our daughter sees it, she runs to the window thinking her daddy is home and I’m left having to lie to her by telling her her daddy’s at work.

Emotionally, this has broken us in ways I can’t put into words. And now, on top of that, I’m left carrying the full financial weight of what used to be a two-income household— all while trying to juggle the legal fees, keep up with bills, our mortgage, child care, working full time, putting food on the table, and be everything my daughter needs to feel safe and cared for through it all.

I’m doing my best, but I can’t carry this alone. And I hate asking — I truly do — but if you’re able to donate anything, even a few dollars, it would help us stay afloat while we try to bring him home.

If you can’t give, please share this. Every share, every kind message, every prayer matters more than you know.

From the bottom of my heart — thank you for helping me fight to keep our family together.

-Alexandria Dowell