REDWOOD CITY, CA - Virgie and her sisters had a difficult life growing up in the Philippines. Their father was a farmer and their mother was a housewife, so it was an obstacle to make ends meet. But one of the sisters, Fely, had a dream to be able to come to the US in order to improve their lives. Hopefully the day would come when Fely could petition the rest of her siblings and her mother to the US. They were prepared to face the consequences of being apart, in order to pursue the dream.
Fely arrived in the US on October 1981. It was heart wrenching to leave the rest of her family behind, but the “Land of Paradise” beckoned to Fely. And so, she took the course of holding multiple jobs, starting very early in the morning and coming home around midnight, and supporting her family “back home”.
Eventually, Fely was able to petition her mother Reynalda, who in turn was able to petition for Virgie as “single.” In order for the petition to come through smoothly, they told Virgie to be patient and to never get married. Virgie obeyed her family’s wishes, even when she had children with her boyfriend. Despite her boyfriend’s insistence on getting married, Virgie stood firm. She wanted to remain eligible when her petition became current.
After many years apart, Virgie’s petition finally became current in 2010. The family started working on putting her papers together, but they spotted trouble. The birth certificates of Virgie’s children listed a date of marriage to their father, when, in truth, neither a wedding nor a marriage ever took place. Apparently, the boyfriend’s father, who kept insisting that Virgie get married, was the one responsible for giving out that false information on the children’s birth certificate. This could jeopardize Virgie’s petition! Only one lawyer’s name came to mind amid all the worrying—leading US immigration attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel. The family knew they could count on the lawyer who has worked on hundreds of successful immigration cases. And as expected, Atty. Gurfinkel delivered.
This Sunday, watch another success story when leading US immigration attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel brings you a brand-new episode of Citizen Pinoy—winner of the Television Journalism Awards (for a regular program) in the 1st Migration Advocacy and Media Awards—this Sunday 5:45 pm (PST) on TFC.
Atty. Gurfinkel will also answer viewers’ immigration questions on everyone’s favorite segment: Your Tanong, My Sagot. Don’t miss this brand-new episode on an all-new Citizen Pinoy this Sunday at 5:45pm (PST) with a replay the next Sunday, at 12:10am (PST) on TFC.
Citizen Pinoy is made possible with the generous support of sponsors who are also dedicated to giving back to the Filipino community: Asian Journal—with circulation in Northern and Southern California, Nevada, and in the East Coast; and Arko Foods, the oldest existing Filipino-owned business in Southern California. Citizen Pinoy is also supported by ABS-CBN Global’s key product offerings: Star Kargo, Starry Starry Store, and Sarimanok One.
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