Gerson

“We lived in Honduras. I was an electrician and had a good job, but it was very difficult to live there. The person who makes money or who has a job is in danger because the criminals are very bad and try to take what we have. It has become more dangerous there for teenagers. They take the boys for gangs and sexually abuse girls. If you have a car, they carjack it. If the person says no, the criminal kills them and takes the car. A criminal came to our house and said, ‘move out, it’s mine now.’ We said no, please. But he had a gun and said ‘vamonos.’

We left in 2013 to come to the United States. We walked and took the train through Guatemala and Mexico. It took months to get here. My son was a year old, the twin girls were 3, and my oldest daughter was 5. My 14-year-old sister was also with us. It was very dangerous, but we had no other choice. We entered in the checkpoint in McAllen, Texas. We applied for asylum and presented the police reports to the authorities that I was beaten, robbed and threatened with death if I didn’t give the criminals what they wanted. If we had stayed in Honduras we would have been killed.

While we were trying to get to the U.S., my mom sent me money to a bank in Mexico. They didn’t give me the money because there was a mix-up with my name. I walked out of the bank and a gang was waiting to rob me. One guy held up a gun and said, ‘I know where your family is waiting for you. If you don’t give me the money, I will kill them.’ I didn’t have the money so he beat me with his gun.

Smugglers tried to make us get in their car. They said they would take us safely to Mexico for $5,000. We said no. We took a bus to the American border. It cost $150 for all of us. In some cities we had to sleep outside waiting for the next bus the next day.

When we got to the border, a man with ICE said, ‘Why are you coming to my country? We don’t want people like you here.’ They separated us at the checkpoint. I was sent to the men’s camp for three months. They tried to send me back to Honduras for one more signature, but my family was already here and I said no. The women and children were let in faster.

My mom was in Baldwin County, so Wendy and the kids came here. They had to sleep outside because my mother didn’t like them. I had to wait three months in the border camp before I could come. It’s harder for men to get through. Wendy never told me they were sleeping outside until I got here. We found a trailer that had dirt floors, two rooms, and no front door. We have done a lot of work on it and have more room.

My dad was in Miami and we borrowed $7500 from him to file for asylum. That was like bail to make sure we show up for our court date. We have paid $38,000 so far for immigration, lawyers, and application fees. My boss here has helped me with this. We are waiting on our green cards, but COVID has made the wait longer.

I got Covid in August and was in South Baldwin Hospital for 16 days. I was on 20 liters of oxygen in the hospital. I wasn’t on a ventilator, but I was close to it. I was very worried. All of the monitors went off because everything was low. I lost 25 pounds in the hospital because my oxygen dropped when I moved. I was scared to move. Now I am on 2 to 3 liters of oxygen. Sometimes I feel good and sometimes not so good. I do electrical work and carpentry, but I haven’t been able to go back to work. We have gotten three months behind on our rent, but my wife and oldest daughter are doing what they can to help.”

The twins
“In Honduras, my grandpa made us go to a house in the mountains, but a car with guns drove by and shot at the house. We hid under the bed and couch. We could see the holes. When we came to the U.S., we didn’t have anything. I don’t remember much about coming here, but I remember holding hands and walking together. Since we were twin girls, someone tried to take us from our parents, but they wouldn’t let them and ran away as fast as they could.

We went through a lot of things, but we are still here and all together. We were never separated.
We like to paint and play. Our big sister loves art. We want to be a police officer, an artist, and a lawyer.”

Wendy (the mother)
“I don’t speak much English because it doesn’t stick in my head. I want to write a book about my life to help other women. Women are abused more often but we can be strong. We are brave even if death and abuse presents itself. We can continue because there is still happiness around us.

In Honduras, men abuse, rape and kill girls. My little sister is 15 and very pretty. She was attacked and they stabbed her. She is hiding in Honduras and I wish I could bring her here. The men would have done the same thing to my daughters. I feel safe here and there is justice. My kids can get an education.

I was a welder in Honduras. I went to college for a year because I wanted to be a psychologist or teacher. Now I am painting and cleaning houses with my daughter to help our family while my husband is recovering from COVID.”

Roxanne (oldest daughter)

“I was five when we came here, so I remember more than my little sisters and brother. We were hungry a lot and our feet were bleeding from walking. Our shoes were ripped open. We ran out of money in Mexico and had to stay there while mom and dad worked to get us enough money to get to the U.S.

I would be a mess if I was still in Honduras. Girls are so young and having babies. I want to be an artist or a fashionista. Sometimes I use my sewing kit and make clothes for our kittens, but they don’t fit. We saved the kittens from the dump.

I started going to school and learned English in three months. Now I am learning Korean on my own. All of us help translate for other kids at school. We try to make it easier for kids who have just come from Honduras and other places. They are scared here and want to go back home. I hang out with them and try to help them fit in. I also learn about new cultures from them. We are all the same.

I have learned how important it is to be kind to others. Our parents were going through a lot when we came here, but they didn’t get much kindness. My mom now gives that to people who just arrived. They don’t have transportation and don’t know where to go or what to do. Mom helps them and makes life a little better for them. I want to do this when I grow up.

I am glad to be here. I don’t know what would have happened to me if we had stayed in Honduras.”

(The feature picture is of the four kids holding their pictures that were taken after they arrived in the U.S.)