The Prophecy

And so it came to pass... my mom got her Green Card! It was so amazing and we were so thankful! To share some of her story as best as I can:

After exhausting as many lawyer offices as she could find only to be told there is no way your case will be heard in court, or to be asked to pay an astronomical amount of money, my mom gave up searching for ways to get her green card. But as in all good stories, a man came along and they fell in love. George wanted to make sure my mom received her green card and they began searching for lawyers again, but this time my mom had more hope. This added hope did not last long as George and my mom were also told time after time from countless lawyers in the Austin area that her case is too complicated and they could not work on it. There were again a few lawyers who wanted a large sum of money up front with little indication they would actually get anything accomplished. George and my mom faced defeat but then George remembered a pen. Yes - a pen.

An immigration lawyer had come by his restaurant some time earlier and he left behind a pen which George had picked up.  George called the number on this pen and what do you know - Mr. G. Wellington Smith said her case may be difficult but not impossible and he would take it on, without ever asking for any money up front. That was a huge break!

Within two years of Mr. Smith working with my mom, she received her green card. There was a lot of paperwork involved and meetings too, the usual, but she and George completed it all on time, and  followed through. We celebrated at Cheesecake Factory, took pictures, and had fun with it. My mom's card actually came in the mail as a new driver's license, a very non-climactic end to her story.

Following, Dan and I decided to begin working with Mr. Smith in order for me to get the green card as well. We used a portion of our income tax return to begin this process in 2008 and my mom and George paid the rest of the fees.  Without their help, we could not have done it.  Dan and I were facing the hardest time of our lives financially.  I was at home with the kids, and Dan out of work since he had undergone a company-wide layoff in 2008.  Our life had begun to change and we began to experience some extremely serious marital strife because of finances or lack thereof.

My sister Jelena, and her fiance, Steven, would begin work on hers as soon after they got married in 2009.  My sister was smart and told him about it from the get-go.  Jelena had a good job, Steven was doing well for himself as well, and their future seemed very promising.  They were anticipating marriage and children.

Overall, everything seemed as it were falling into place as far as immigration was concerned, so we went about life as usual, having to make an occasional copy and fax, fill out forms and send photos and such.