In 2017 five-year-old Julia traveled with her mother, Guadalupe, from Honduras to the United States. Her harrowing journey took her through Mexico in the cargo section of a tractor trailer. Then she was separated from her mother, who was held hostage by smugglers who exploited her physically and financially. At the United States border, Julia came through the processing center as an unaccompanied minor after being separated from her stepdad who was deported.
Gena Thomas tells the story of how Julia came to the United States, what she experienced in the system, and what it took to reunite her with her family. A Spanish-speaking former missionary, Gena became Julia's foster mother and witnessed firsthand the ways migrant children experience trauma. Weaving together the stories of birth mother and foster mother, this book shows the human face of the immigrant and refugee, the challenges of the immigration and foster care systems, and the tenacious power of motherly love.
Table of Content
Foreword by Michelle Ferrigno Warren
Introduction: Julia
Part I: Honduras
1. Emigración
2. Expatriation
Part II: Mexico
3. Río Bravo
4. Rio Grande
Part III: United States
5. Unaccompanied Minor
6. Dependent Children
7. Foster Daughter
8. ‘Quién Es Usted a Mi?’ (‘Who Are You to Me?’)
Part IV: Honduras
9. Reunification/Reunificación
10. Reflections
Epilogue: Dear Julia
Acknowledgments
Appendix A: A Note to Other Foster Parents
Appendix B: An Interview with Elí Romero
Appendix C: Small-Group Discussion Questions
Notes
Glossary
Recommended Reading
About the author
Michelle Warren is the advocacy and strategic engagement director for the Christian Community Development Association. She is an immigration, education and human service policy specialist and is an adjunct faculty member at Denver Seminary. With over twenty years’ experience working in Christian community development, Michelle is a part of the national Evangelical Immigration Table and helps consult for the National Immigration Forum, and is a founding staff member of Open Door Ministries, a large community development corporation. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Cedarville University and later earned her master’s in public administration from the University of Colorado. She and her family live in an immigrant neighborhood in Denver.
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