Iamwithdomingo ~ Domingo Ferreira
Donation protected
Dear Friends & Supporters,
As many of you and the rest of the world know my husband, your friend, neighbor and community member; Domingo Ferreira was taken into custody by immigration officals on February 2nd. Despite the significant medical hardships that my daughter & I battle; the thousands of dollars spent on the most prominent attorneys to fight on Domingo's behalf; the fact that he is helping legally raise our granddaughter since birth as our daughter is critically ill; AND the fact that he has been here LEGALLY since the age of 14 along with the numerous documents we have in relation to his identity being stolen by a high ranking organized crime member along with the detailing of how he may be in very real danger should he be deported back to the Dominican Republic, AND most notably the tremendous community support ~ he is still set to be deported! Yes I know all of the above is a whirlwind of facts and details, well just imagine trying to LIVE through it ALL!
Until his deportation takes place however, he will remain in federal immigration custody hours away from his family and shackled in a cell 23hrs a day, which as many of you who know and love Domingo know he is far from a danger to the public and his case is ripe with injustice. As you, we truly believe Domingo is being used as a pawn and posterboy for political purposes and as a result despite his being married to a U.S. Citizen, having a son-in-law in the Navy AND raising a beautiful family for the last 25 years here in the U.S with me, it no longer matters as we have been ripped apart. We have been together since the age of 17 yrs old and I cannot even fathom how to get through the next few weeks never mind the next few years without him by my side. Meanwhile he fears I will not remember him soon as I have been diagnosed with Early Onset Dementia and have already begun the descent into hell that awaits me and of which he was literally my caretaker and companion; not just my husband and best friend.
The news and media coverage has died down and the story seems to have come to an end; but for us the true nightmare is just beginning as I am now left to pick up the pieces and try and rebuild a life without our sole provider and caretaker; all while providing for his needs in a foreign 3rd world country until he can become acclimated and obtain work. Our needs as a family and on behalf of Domingo are significant and run the gamut from still paying off the lawyers, obtaining security deposit money for him to rent a room to lay his head at night, money to buy his insulin as he is a severe diabetic and has been stripped of his medical insurance, funds to send his luggage by boat and also for him to secure transportation so that he may find a job, money to buy a phone or computer so that he can facetime/skype with his 2yr old granddaughter who now feels abandoned by her primary caretaker and "father". I am struggling to think of EVERYTHING and have needs as well for everyday things for our family here in the US so that we don't fall behind on our mortage. Even such things as groceries, pampers and toiletries are needed in BOTH households as that will allow me to essentially create 2 homes in the hopes of reuniting our family... atleast on a temporary basis there in the Dominican Republic and for but a month at a time.
He will no longer have such luxuries as running water or regular electricity and instead will be living in a beautiful but highly corrupt and expensive country with an identity that has already been tainted due to his identity having been stolen . As for my family, as his wife and mother of his children; we will NO LONGER have the luxury of a devoted and hard working husband, father and grandfather not to mention sole caretaker and medical provider for myself and daughter. We ALL now live in perpetual fear, all while trying to pick up the numerous shattered pieces of our life and create some semi-balance of existance for us all and face the new reality of a life without him, but we have to..he is depending on me and so aren't our granddchildren. I continue to put my pride aside and beg for both him and our 2 grandchildren, as at the end of the day our story is far from over and I just want to sleep at night knowing that he will be okay and one day, one day maybe we may be able to once again carve out a place in the Dominican Republic to re-unite, even if due to our need for medical care here, we know it will always ONLY be on a temporary basis.
Life for the Ferreira Family will no longer be the same and instead every one of us lives in constant fear still as although he is now in custody, the real fight begins and I beg each of you not to help us but rather to help me help him. He has cared for me through the good and bad, in health and now sickness and it's my turn to rise up and continue to fight for him! As we all know his story has exploded across the country not just because of the injustice and outrage we all feel but because those that know Domingo love him and the #iamwithdomingo is so much more than just a cause, it's truly OUR life and our nightmare to untangle. I beg you please don't let me fail him now when he truly needs us ALL the most <3
As many of you and the rest of the world know my husband, your friend, neighbor and community member; Domingo Ferreira was taken into custody by immigration officals on February 2nd. Despite the significant medical hardships that my daughter & I battle; the thousands of dollars spent on the most prominent attorneys to fight on Domingo's behalf; the fact that he is helping legally raise our granddaughter since birth as our daughter is critically ill; AND the fact that he has been here LEGALLY since the age of 14 along with the numerous documents we have in relation to his identity being stolen by a high ranking organized crime member along with the detailing of how he may be in very real danger should he be deported back to the Dominican Republic, AND most notably the tremendous community support ~ he is still set to be deported! Yes I know all of the above is a whirlwind of facts and details, well just imagine trying to LIVE through it ALL!
Until his deportation takes place however, he will remain in federal immigration custody hours away from his family and shackled in a cell 23hrs a day, which as many of you who know and love Domingo know he is far from a danger to the public and his case is ripe with injustice. As you, we truly believe Domingo is being used as a pawn and posterboy for political purposes and as a result despite his being married to a U.S. Citizen, having a son-in-law in the Navy AND raising a beautiful family for the last 25 years here in the U.S with me, it no longer matters as we have been ripped apart. We have been together since the age of 17 yrs old and I cannot even fathom how to get through the next few weeks never mind the next few years without him by my side. Meanwhile he fears I will not remember him soon as I have been diagnosed with Early Onset Dementia and have already begun the descent into hell that awaits me and of which he was literally my caretaker and companion; not just my husband and best friend.
The news and media coverage has died down and the story seems to have come to an end; but for us the true nightmare is just beginning as I am now left to pick up the pieces and try and rebuild a life without our sole provider and caretaker; all while providing for his needs in a foreign 3rd world country until he can become acclimated and obtain work. Our needs as a family and on behalf of Domingo are significant and run the gamut from still paying off the lawyers, obtaining security deposit money for him to rent a room to lay his head at night, money to buy his insulin as he is a severe diabetic and has been stripped of his medical insurance, funds to send his luggage by boat and also for him to secure transportation so that he may find a job, money to buy a phone or computer so that he can facetime/skype with his 2yr old granddaughter who now feels abandoned by her primary caretaker and "father". I am struggling to think of EVERYTHING and have needs as well for everyday things for our family here in the US so that we don't fall behind on our mortage. Even such things as groceries, pampers and toiletries are needed in BOTH households as that will allow me to essentially create 2 homes in the hopes of reuniting our family... atleast on a temporary basis there in the Dominican Republic and for but a month at a time.
He will no longer have such luxuries as running water or regular electricity and instead will be living in a beautiful but highly corrupt and expensive country with an identity that has already been tainted due to his identity having been stolen . As for my family, as his wife and mother of his children; we will NO LONGER have the luxury of a devoted and hard working husband, father and grandfather not to mention sole caretaker and medical provider for myself and daughter. We ALL now live in perpetual fear, all while trying to pick up the numerous shattered pieces of our life and create some semi-balance of existance for us all and face the new reality of a life without him, but we have to..he is depending on me and so aren't our granddchildren. I continue to put my pride aside and beg for both him and our 2 grandchildren, as at the end of the day our story is far from over and I just want to sleep at night knowing that he will be okay and one day, one day maybe we may be able to once again carve out a place in the Dominican Republic to re-unite, even if due to our need for medical care here, we know it will always ONLY be on a temporary basis.
Life for the Ferreira Family will no longer be the same and instead every one of us lives in constant fear still as although he is now in custody, the real fight begins and I beg each of you not to help us but rather to help me help him. He has cared for me through the good and bad, in health and now sickness and it's my turn to rise up and continue to fight for him! As we all know his story has exploded across the country not just because of the injustice and outrage we all feel but because those that know Domingo love him and the #iamwithdomingo is so much more than just a cause, it's truly OUR life and our nightmare to untangle. I beg you please don't let me fail him now when he truly needs us ALL the most <3
Organizer
Diane Ferreira
Organizer
East Hartford, CT
