Hello everyone – If you are here, you may know me as a friend, neighbor, colleague, or community member or perhaps you know John and his family and friends or know the Church (I won't name it here) or have connected with him in some way.

If you are here through me, Liliana, I want you to know that as long as I have been a believer in mutual aid and community care, I have never personally started a Go Fund Me until today. The last two weeks in Minneapolis have been absolutely devastating and overwhelming as numerous families experience family separation and one of the absolute worst days or moments they can experience.

One of those families this past week was John's. John is both a neighbor and also worked with/at the Church my 4 year old's school is in, which is how we became connected. He is originally from Liberia and was kidnapped by [ ] last weekend.

Many of you know I am an attorney and so I come to you not as attorney here, but as a community member helping out a fellow community member, because right now John and his family need to retain private immigration counsel. In this moment it is overwhelming to find available counsel at all – our legal aid offices are overwhelmed and the private bar is the quickest way to help get people out and home, but it can be very expensive to get a trustworthy attorney. So, I was heartened to hear that a trusted, reputable, private immigration attorney (vetted by immigration colleagues I trust with my life) is willing to take this case on "low bono." But John was the primary wage-earner for his family, so even this low cost is steep.

For this reason, I am asking you to please donate or share to John and his family. His family is already dealing with the reality that he will not be home for the holidays and has to reckon with the possibility he may not come home. But with your help, we can try and hopefully we can help get him home soon. Thank you so much for considering and sharing.

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A message from John's family:

"John and his family are thankful for anyone who takes a second to hear our story. We are collecting donations to bring John back to his family.

John was young he came to this country to play basketball in college and make a better life for himself and his family. He worked hard and diligently but things unfolded in a different way than expected yet he remained a hard worker.

He now has a large family who love him and need him here with us. We are devastated by the loss of a father, a friend, a neighbor, and a partner. Never did any of us expect to spend this holiday season without the closest man to us. Though our faith is strong we are facing a dark time without the person who leads us."

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Follow up note: WOW! We reached the goal for legal fees quickly - you all are AMAZING! His family is already excited to call John and share the news. But also, recall he was the sole wage earner and his family could use the funds, so anything we get above 3K, will also still be going to John’s family. Thank you all so much. It means a lot to me and I know it means a lot to him and his family that so many people are behind them. I am so grateful, sincerely.