Keep This WV Military Family Together
Donation protected
James and Jiya met at a college party. They remember it as love at sight.
James was a West Virginia boy in the National Guard, who came from a long line of American soldiers. Jiya was from Nepal, here at college on a student visa. Her family had fought alongside British and American soldiers since World War 2.
They were married last November, while Jiya was still on her student visa. When she could no longer afford to pay for full-time college, they scrimped and saved to pay the $2000 in legal fees to apply for Jiya's citizenship.
Everything seemed fine. The military issued Jiya an ID card as a military family member. US Senators assured them that everything would be okay. They never hid or evaded, never committed a crime. The process seemed to be taking a long time, but they knew the government can be slow.
On June 22nd, Jiya and James received a letter that turned their lives upside down. Jiya has been given 30 days to leave the country or she will be deported. They say some aspect of the paperwork was not completed perfectly.
Meanwhile, James deploys Wednesday.
Our immigration system is backlogged, broken, and brutal. An estimated 11,800 military families alone are mired in situations like this.
Please contribute what you can, as soon as you can, so that Jiya and James can cover the $4200 lawyers fee to fight to keep their family together. In addition to his military service, James has had to juggle jobs as a corrections officer and restaurant worker - often logging 80 hours/week to make ends meet.
We need all the help that we can get. In addition to making a donation, we hope you will also consider signing and sharing our petition here:
secure.ngpvan.com/ JT1Zzeflr0ewRQeyTBGbbA2
(Note on funds: Outside of GoFundMe’s small administrative fees, every penny of this fundraising drive will go to James and Jiya’s family for legal fees. This drive was created by Mr Smith in close collaboration with the family, but no funds will go to him or to any other person, campaign or organization.)
James was a West Virginia boy in the National Guard, who came from a long line of American soldiers. Jiya was from Nepal, here at college on a student visa. Her family had fought alongside British and American soldiers since World War 2.
They were married last November, while Jiya was still on her student visa. When she could no longer afford to pay for full-time college, they scrimped and saved to pay the $2000 in legal fees to apply for Jiya's citizenship.
Everything seemed fine. The military issued Jiya an ID card as a military family member. US Senators assured them that everything would be okay. They never hid or evaded, never committed a crime. The process seemed to be taking a long time, but they knew the government can be slow.
On June 22nd, Jiya and James received a letter that turned their lives upside down. Jiya has been given 30 days to leave the country or she will be deported. They say some aspect of the paperwork was not completed perfectly.
Meanwhile, James deploys Wednesday.
Our immigration system is backlogged, broken, and brutal. An estimated 11,800 military families alone are mired in situations like this.
Please contribute what you can, as soon as you can, so that Jiya and James can cover the $4200 lawyers fee to fight to keep their family together. In addition to his military service, James has had to juggle jobs as a corrections officer and restaurant worker - often logging 80 hours/week to make ends meet.
We need all the help that we can get. In addition to making a donation, we hope you will also consider signing and sharing our petition here:
secure.ngpvan.com/ JT1Zzeflr0ewRQeyTBGbbA2
(Note on funds: Outside of GoFundMe’s small administrative fees, every penny of this fundraising drive will go to James and Jiya’s family for legal fees. This drive was created by Mr Smith in close collaboration with the family, but no funds will go to him or to any other person, campaign or organization.)
Organizer and beneficiary
Stephen Noble Smith
Organizer
Charleston, WV
James McCormick
Beneficiary
