A Green Card to the American Dream
Donation protected
Our Story:
As most of our friends and family know, we first met during Josh's stint as a Master's student in Koeln (Cologne), Germany. In March of 2015, a mutual swipe right on Tinder changed our lives forever. After a brief conversation on the app, we began talking more seriously, realizing we had several shared interests. We finally met in person at the end of March once I returned from a visit back home and quickly fell for each other. Little did we know what the future held in store for us.
Following Josh's move to Amsterdam for a more engaging Master's program, we continued our relationship long distance, taking several trips together and seeing each other nearly every week. It was never easy, but we were committed to each other and our shared bond. This commitment materialized last New Year's as the clock struck midnight, when Josh proposed and Sam answered yes, making 2017 a year to remember.
Last spring, Josh accepted a Ph.D. position stateside and we began the long, arduous and convoluted bureacratic puzzle also known as the American fiancé (K1) visa process. Why this visa? Well, even though Sam can freely travel to the States, if we were to get married stateside and apply to adjust status without this visa, he'd be removed from the country and barred entry for 10 years. Visa fraud is no joke and this was not something we wanted to get wrong.
Thankfully, and despite the hurdles, we have finally managed to secure Sam's K1 visa and we will be reunited this December with our wedding following in January in Josh's hometown of Yorktown, VA.
We're incredibly grateful for the emotional support our friends and family have provided throughout this first leg of the journey, but the going only gets tougher from here on out. As it turns out, this next leg of the adventure is going to be the hardest part. Not only is the application process expensive, but Sam is not allowed to work for at least four months, until he gets work authorization. While we've worked hard to save money on the side, a Ph.D. student income is meager.
No matter what, though, being together is what is most important to us.
Our Dream:
To start our American adventure off right!
Leaving our European lives behind to see what America has in store for us is by no means an easy task and these past three months apart with Josh beginning his Ph.D. program and Sam waiting on his K1 visa have been rough, but it has all been worth it to know we will soon be able to spend the rest of our lives at each other's side.
It is with humility and gratitude that we ask our friends and family to contribute to building a stable financial foundation to our adventure by helping us cover the costs of the next leg of this bureacratic labyrinth.
Our Expenses:
We want to be open and honest about the costs of the process and have listed each item below
1) Fee for I-485 Application (Green Card) = $1,225
2) Biometrics (Fancy Fingerprint Scans) = $85
3) Vaccination Form (Ew, German Germs!) = $150
4) Administrative Fees (They Want Fancy Photos): $40
Total Expenses: $1500
Thank you all for taking the time to read our story! Any and all donations are accepted with the utmost thanks and love.
With gratitude,
Sam & Josh
As most of our friends and family know, we first met during Josh's stint as a Master's student in Koeln (Cologne), Germany. In March of 2015, a mutual swipe right on Tinder changed our lives forever. After a brief conversation on the app, we began talking more seriously, realizing we had several shared interests. We finally met in person at the end of March once I returned from a visit back home and quickly fell for each other. Little did we know what the future held in store for us.
Following Josh's move to Amsterdam for a more engaging Master's program, we continued our relationship long distance, taking several trips together and seeing each other nearly every week. It was never easy, but we were committed to each other and our shared bond. This commitment materialized last New Year's as the clock struck midnight, when Josh proposed and Sam answered yes, making 2017 a year to remember.
Last spring, Josh accepted a Ph.D. position stateside and we began the long, arduous and convoluted bureacratic puzzle also known as the American fiancé (K1) visa process. Why this visa? Well, even though Sam can freely travel to the States, if we were to get married stateside and apply to adjust status without this visa, he'd be removed from the country and barred entry for 10 years. Visa fraud is no joke and this was not something we wanted to get wrong.
Thankfully, and despite the hurdles, we have finally managed to secure Sam's K1 visa and we will be reunited this December with our wedding following in January in Josh's hometown of Yorktown, VA.
We're incredibly grateful for the emotional support our friends and family have provided throughout this first leg of the journey, but the going only gets tougher from here on out. As it turns out, this next leg of the adventure is going to be the hardest part. Not only is the application process expensive, but Sam is not allowed to work for at least four months, until he gets work authorization. While we've worked hard to save money on the side, a Ph.D. student income is meager.
No matter what, though, being together is what is most important to us.
Our Dream:
To start our American adventure off right!
Leaving our European lives behind to see what America has in store for us is by no means an easy task and these past three months apart with Josh beginning his Ph.D. program and Sam waiting on his K1 visa have been rough, but it has all been worth it to know we will soon be able to spend the rest of our lives at each other's side.
It is with humility and gratitude that we ask our friends and family to contribute to building a stable financial foundation to our adventure by helping us cover the costs of the next leg of this bureacratic labyrinth.
Our Expenses:
We want to be open and honest about the costs of the process and have listed each item below
1) Fee for I-485 Application (Green Card) = $1,225
2) Biometrics (Fancy Fingerprint Scans) = $85
3) Vaccination Form (Ew, German Germs!) = $150
4) Administrative Fees (They Want Fancy Photos): $40
Total Expenses: $1500
Thank you all for taking the time to read our story! Any and all donations are accepted with the utmost thanks and love.
With gratitude,
Sam & Josh
Organiser
Josh Rivers
Organiser
Milwaukee, WI
