<div><strong>Help Us Bring Felipe Home: Support His Legal DefenseFund</strong>
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<div>Dear Friends and Compassionate Supporters, 
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<div>We’re reaching out with heavy hearts—but also with hope. Our dear Felipe Zapata Velásquez, a 28-year-old Colombian and third-year Food and Resource Economics student at the University of Florida, has had his world turned upside down. Felipe is someone who has worked harder than most, not just to survive—but to thrive. He came to the U.S. to pursue a dream of education, growth, and giving back. That dream is now hanging in the balance.
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<div><strong>The Situation: </strong>
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<div>On March 28, 2025, Felipe was stopped in Gainesville, Florida, for traffic violations. What should have been a routine encounter quickly escalated. Felipe was detained, and within hours, turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He was transferred to the Krome Detention Center in Miami-Dade County, where he was held without access to the resources or representation he needed.
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<div> Felipe had nearly completed his degree, supported by a <strong><em>merit-based scholarship</em></strong> he earned through persistence and discipline. He had carved out a future here—one that many of us take for granted. But in an instant, that future was taken from him. After weeks of confusion, legal hurdles, and separation from those who love him, Felipe was deported to Colombia. And while he is now physically safe, <strong><em>he is left to face the emotional and financial wreckage of a life interrupted. </em></strong>
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<div>His education was cut short. His community was ripped away. The foundation he built has been shaken—but not broken.
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<div><strong>Why We’re Asking for Your Help</strong>:
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<div>We—Felipe’s family, friends, and supporters—are raising funds to help ease the heavy burden of this experience and to support the legal fight to bring Felipe back and restore his life and dignity.
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<div><strong>Your support will:    </strong>
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<div>•    <strong>Fund Legal Advocacy:</strong> We are seeking the help of experienced immigration attorneys who can pursue every possible path to justice for Felipe.   
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<div> •    <strong>Cover Legal and Reentry Costs</strong>: From court filings and consultations to future travel and visa processes—this journey requires resources that are currently out of reach.   
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<div> •    <strong>Support Felipe’s Recovery: </strong>The emotional toll of detention and deportation is real. Your contributions also help ensure Felipe has the stability and support he needs as he regains his footing. 
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<div><strong>Who Felipe Is</strong>: To know Felipe is to know someone who never gives up. He’s the kind of person who lifts others, who cheers up a room, studies late into the night, shows up for his friends, and believes deeply in the power of education to transform lives. He always goes beyond what’s expected. His discipline and love for people is remarkable. 
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<div>This situation does not define him. His resilience does. <strong>Stand With Felipe: </strong>This is bigger than one person. Felipe’s story is one of countless international students and immigrants who are vulnerable to a system that too often forgets their humanity. 
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<div>By helping Felipe, you’re standing up for fairness. For second chances. For the right to dream. 
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<div><strong>Please Donate and Share: </strong>Every dollar, every share, every act of kindness brings Felipe closer to the future he’s still fighting for.
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<div> Let’s come together—not out of pity, but out of belief—that he still has so much more to give. 
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<div><strong>Thank you for standing with us.</strong>
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<div>With love and gratitude, 
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<div>Felipe’s Family, Friends, and Supporters
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Fernando Rojas

Anonymous

Sylvia Paluzzi

Celeste Shitama

Jonathan Crosson

Lorraine and Charles P

Lina White

Kyle Proctor

kathleen outman

Alexandra Anania

Jamie Longanecker

Joel Cruzdavis

jessica rockstein

Nicolas ANGER

Noah Shitama

Lorena Huff

Nicolas Oliveros mendez

Rachel Preble

Reunite Felipe with His Dreams and Loved Ones

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Reunite Felipe with His Dreams and Loved Ones

Still $3,525 to go. Help us build momentum.