Get Our Family Back To The U.S.A.
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Yedid is a Mexican Citizen who was never deported or detained, but for being honest and trying to do the right thing, has been punished with a bar from applying for an immigration waiver until 10 years are spent outside the country. Now eligible after spending 10 years in the dangerous border town of Reynosa, Mexico, with her U.S. Citizen family, they are asking for help with immigration expenses and family relocation back to Chicago where the rest of their family has been waiting for them.
(Breakdown of expenses shown at bottom of story)
A 2011 News Article on Us
Thomas, Yedid, and their 3 children have been living displaced from Chicago, IL, U.S.A. since 2008, waiting out a horrible immigration bar that prohibits Yedid from applying for a waiver to get her visa until 10 years are spent outside the country. This bar can be researched in immigration law under INS 212(a)(9)(c)(i). It is not to be confused with the 1, 3, and 10 year bars from entry. Yedid admitted to an immigration officer under oath at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico that she had 2 undocumented entries, and the punishment given for that honesty was a permanent bar with no waiver for 10 years. Being already married to a U.S. Citizen and already having a child together who was born in the United States did not factor into the law at all.
Since that day they have done nothing but obey the law.
Now that it is 2018, Yedid can apply for her waiver, and they already have begun submitting documents to expert immigration attorney Brian D. Lerner, who has experience with the most complicated immigration cases. He has assured that because they stayed out of the country for 10 years, they have an excellent case. But the immigration fees and relocation expenses are too great. They have already been forced to withdraw all their retirement savings and sell investments. Without help, their family of 5 will be in financial hardship once relocated.
This fund is to provide relief so Yedid and her family can survive the transition back to Chicago without substantial setbacks and risk after already sacrificing 10 years of their lives living in a sub-standard, harsh and violent environment just to keep their family together.
Please consider a donation, and more importantly SHARE this page on all your social media sites and with friends.
Your donation does not have to be large. $1 dollar is just as important as $100.
All they want is to be proud, productive, law abiding citizens of the United States. They have struggled endlessly to earn it.
A 2018 Follow-Up News Article on Us
More details about Yedid and her family:
Yedid first entered the country undocumented in 1997 to work and provide help to her father in Mexico who was sick with diabetes. She returned to Mexico in 2001. The second time she came was in 2002, also to work. She was never caught, deported or detained for either of these crossings. Yedid then met Thomas in Chicago in 2003, and they married in 2004. Yedid had maintained presence in the U.S. since meeting Thomas. They had a child together in 2006. They wanted to do the right thing and continue as a family within the law, so they applied for her visa in 2007, and they documented her entries on the application.
In 2008, she was summoned to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico for her interview at the U.S. Consulate. It was there that they were devastated by the truth of this bar- that because Yedid had two undocumented entries to the United States, there was absolutely no legal path for her to return for 10 years. Brokenhearted, Yedid and their son Teddy took a flight to her parents house in Temixco, Morelos, Mexico, and Thomas flew back to Oak Lawn, Illinois. After an extremely painful 8 months living separately, Thomas researched a plan to move his family to a border town so Yedid and their children could legally live in Mexico, and he could cross to work as a truck driver everyday in the U.S.A. to support them. This plan was executed, but the road has been extremely rocky, leaving irreparable damage to their family.
Yedid and Thomas have 3 children. The first, Teddy (11), was born in Illinois, and Janet(7) and Kimberly(5) were born in Reynosa after the exile and became naturalized U.S. citizens. They were raised in Mexican schools but are bilingual and understand American culture. They have missed so many of the freedoms we take for granted, such as gym class in school everyday, and grassy yards and playgrounds to play in. But most of all they have missed the security of a country with a working law enforcement system. Thomas also was born a daughter from a previous relationship; Aleksi (19), who has remained in her mother's custody in Chicago these 10 years. This move that was made to keep the cellular family together forced Thomas and Aleksi to abruptly end regular visitation that had been established for 10 years before the separation. This has robbed Aleksi of a father for all this time and left her with emotional damage and mental scars. The choice was a necessary evil that Thomas was forced to make to keep his marriage and family together for the next 10 years. Thomas and Yedid have also been forced to be away from their aging parents during this time, and will need to be free to provide care and assisted living for them in later years.
Their family has been exposed to countless risks while in Reynosa. The violence from cartel gun fights is a constant threat to their safety. They audibly hear gunfights on a weekly basis in Reynosa. They have relied on social media networking to stay informed of high-risk areas and/or days to stay out of harm's way. Still they have had some close calls, and remaining in Reynosa will continue this risk. On several occasions their children were sent home from school due to an expected neighborhood gang battle, and on one occassion, they had to perform a safety drill during classes, when an unexpected fight in the neighborhood broke out. These fights are heavy duty, and pose serious threats with weapons such as grenades, 50 caliber rounds, and road hazards like tire spikes.
Yedid's husband Thomas faces much difficulty and delays as he has spent the last 10 years crossing the international border every day to work as a local truck driver. He is the sole provider for his family. This takes up most of his time and energy, and caused some medical issues. Because of this, Yedid has been tasked with everything else, such as taking the children to school and household chores. Therefore she cannot work to provide supplemental income.
"This fund means the world to us. It gives us back some of the freedom that we have lost, the freedom that broken U.S. immigration policy has denied us all these years. It will give us back peace and hope to know that we have financial help in our fight. Thank you so much for considering a donation to bring our family back to the U.S.A."
Breakdown of expenses:
Attorney fees: $5,250
Professional Forensic Psychological Examination for waiver: $1,500
INS filing and processing fees, medical exams, biometrics, travel expenses to Ciudad Juarez for interview: $3,750
Moving expenses from Reynosa to Chicago, support during employment transition, securing a place to live, getting children in school, GoFundMe fees : $4,500
Our time goal for these funds is by the end of 2018, when we are expecting to have attained Yedid's green card and prepare for the relocation to the states.
THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ OUR STORY.
(Breakdown of expenses shown at bottom of story)
A 2011 News Article on Us
Thomas, Yedid, and their 3 children have been living displaced from Chicago, IL, U.S.A. since 2008, waiting out a horrible immigration bar that prohibits Yedid from applying for a waiver to get her visa until 10 years are spent outside the country. This bar can be researched in immigration law under INS 212(a)(9)(c)(i). It is not to be confused with the 1, 3, and 10 year bars from entry. Yedid admitted to an immigration officer under oath at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico that she had 2 undocumented entries, and the punishment given for that honesty was a permanent bar with no waiver for 10 years. Being already married to a U.S. Citizen and already having a child together who was born in the United States did not factor into the law at all.
Since that day they have done nothing but obey the law.
Now that it is 2018, Yedid can apply for her waiver, and they already have begun submitting documents to expert immigration attorney Brian D. Lerner, who has experience with the most complicated immigration cases. He has assured that because they stayed out of the country for 10 years, they have an excellent case. But the immigration fees and relocation expenses are too great. They have already been forced to withdraw all their retirement savings and sell investments. Without help, their family of 5 will be in financial hardship once relocated.
This fund is to provide relief so Yedid and her family can survive the transition back to Chicago without substantial setbacks and risk after already sacrificing 10 years of their lives living in a sub-standard, harsh and violent environment just to keep their family together.
Please consider a donation, and more importantly SHARE this page on all your social media sites and with friends.
Your donation does not have to be large. $1 dollar is just as important as $100.
All they want is to be proud, productive, law abiding citizens of the United States. They have struggled endlessly to earn it.
A 2018 Follow-Up News Article on Us
More details about Yedid and her family:
Yedid first entered the country undocumented in 1997 to work and provide help to her father in Mexico who was sick with diabetes. She returned to Mexico in 2001. The second time she came was in 2002, also to work. She was never caught, deported or detained for either of these crossings. Yedid then met Thomas in Chicago in 2003, and they married in 2004. Yedid had maintained presence in the U.S. since meeting Thomas. They had a child together in 2006. They wanted to do the right thing and continue as a family within the law, so they applied for her visa in 2007, and they documented her entries on the application.
In 2008, she was summoned to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico for her interview at the U.S. Consulate. It was there that they were devastated by the truth of this bar- that because Yedid had two undocumented entries to the United States, there was absolutely no legal path for her to return for 10 years. Brokenhearted, Yedid and their son Teddy took a flight to her parents house in Temixco, Morelos, Mexico, and Thomas flew back to Oak Lawn, Illinois. After an extremely painful 8 months living separately, Thomas researched a plan to move his family to a border town so Yedid and their children could legally live in Mexico, and he could cross to work as a truck driver everyday in the U.S.A. to support them. This plan was executed, but the road has been extremely rocky, leaving irreparable damage to their family.
Yedid and Thomas have 3 children. The first, Teddy (11), was born in Illinois, and Janet(7) and Kimberly(5) were born in Reynosa after the exile and became naturalized U.S. citizens. They were raised in Mexican schools but are bilingual and understand American culture. They have missed so many of the freedoms we take for granted, such as gym class in school everyday, and grassy yards and playgrounds to play in. But most of all they have missed the security of a country with a working law enforcement system. Thomas also was born a daughter from a previous relationship; Aleksi (19), who has remained in her mother's custody in Chicago these 10 years. This move that was made to keep the cellular family together forced Thomas and Aleksi to abruptly end regular visitation that had been established for 10 years before the separation. This has robbed Aleksi of a father for all this time and left her with emotional damage and mental scars. The choice was a necessary evil that Thomas was forced to make to keep his marriage and family together for the next 10 years. Thomas and Yedid have also been forced to be away from their aging parents during this time, and will need to be free to provide care and assisted living for them in later years.
Their family has been exposed to countless risks while in Reynosa. The violence from cartel gun fights is a constant threat to their safety. They audibly hear gunfights on a weekly basis in Reynosa. They have relied on social media networking to stay informed of high-risk areas and/or days to stay out of harm's way. Still they have had some close calls, and remaining in Reynosa will continue this risk. On several occasions their children were sent home from school due to an expected neighborhood gang battle, and on one occassion, they had to perform a safety drill during classes, when an unexpected fight in the neighborhood broke out. These fights are heavy duty, and pose serious threats with weapons such as grenades, 50 caliber rounds, and road hazards like tire spikes.
Yedid's husband Thomas faces much difficulty and delays as he has spent the last 10 years crossing the international border every day to work as a local truck driver. He is the sole provider for his family. This takes up most of his time and energy, and caused some medical issues. Because of this, Yedid has been tasked with everything else, such as taking the children to school and household chores. Therefore she cannot work to provide supplemental income.
"This fund means the world to us. It gives us back some of the freedom that we have lost, the freedom that broken U.S. immigration policy has denied us all these years. It will give us back peace and hope to know that we have financial help in our fight. Thank you so much for considering a donation to bring our family back to the U.S.A."
Breakdown of expenses:
Attorney fees: $5,250
Professional Forensic Psychological Examination for waiver: $1,500
INS filing and processing fees, medical exams, biometrics, travel expenses to Ciudad Juarez for interview: $3,750
Moving expenses from Reynosa to Chicago, support during employment transition, securing a place to live, getting children in school, GoFundMe fees : $4,500
Our time goal for these funds is by the end of 2018, when we are expecting to have attained Yedid's green card and prepare for the relocation to the states.
THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ OUR STORY.
Organizer
Thomas Kobylecky
Organizer
McAllen, TX
