Volver a tus brazos otra vez
It was a warm and sunny day in Los Angeles, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025. The weather was much like the warm embraces between family members who are able to see each other once again after years of being set apart. For many families here in the U.S., it is usually the best of times when a family reunion is initiated, but what if your family is in another country, where the odds look different? Where you want to see them so badly but you currently can’t.
Raices del Sur, a program dedicated to reuniting family members by applying for visas, successfully completed its mission again this month. Uncles will be meeting nephews, brothers meeting sisters, and most of all, elderly parents reuniting with their children again after being separated for a long time.
Luis Aguilar, President of Raices del Sur, started in 2017 by turning his dream of reuniting Mexican, Central and South American families into a reality. “It’s an honor to be able to make dreams come true,” said Aguilar.
Aguilar’s team is motivated by that same desire. When asked what is the purpose of this program, a majority of the staff members said the same thing, “unite families.”It's a labor of love and joy that keeps them going. Ricardo Velazquez, an employee of the program, dedicated himself to the mission after successfully reuniting with his parents after 21 years.
Their staff consist of coordinators and representatives., To start the process, relatives here in the United States are interviewed. Then, they gather all the information needed to begin the application process for a visitor visa for their loved one.
Coordinator Mayra Perez said, “Honesty is crucial.” Applicants are quickly rejected when the information they are providing does not match the content of the application submitted. “Appointments for visitor visas used to take six months, now it takes anywhere between 12 to 18 months to schedule.” stating that delay grew during the pandemic and doesn’t show signs of changing. Perez also said, “It all depends on the embassy, we support the families in the application process, but ultimately, the decision, it’s up to the embassy.”
Perez said, “We have found ourselves with many cases of people who have already attempted the process with an immigration lawyer, only to be misinformed. Despite it being a lawyer, they lose their money and lose their time. Regardless if they’ve attempted the process with a lawyer we advise everyone the same way, you have to speak the truth.”
Family members drove in from all over California, including the Alegreia family from Temecula, a city in the Riverside Country. Gabriel Alegreia, one of the lucky family members receiving his uncle said, “I haven't seen him for 20 years” and “I feel nervous because I haven't seen him for so long,” when reflecting on how long he had not seen his uncle and how he was feeling at that moment.
Many other families were eager to see their loved ones. While waiting, a bus came up the street and families began cheering. It turned out that the bus did not carry any of the family members that were coming to see their families and was actually making a stop on that street before heading to the Hollywood Bowl. False alarm, however, everyone got a good laugh out of it.
Mariana Diaz, visiting from Fresno, is also here waiting for her grandmother Isabel Flores Robles. She says it has been “about 25 years” since she was last with Robles. “I met her when I was three, but I don’t remember.” Diaz is accompanied by two of her sisters, their mom, two aunts with their husbands and three cousins.
For everyone in the family it's similar to Diaz; a 20 year average since they last shared space with Robles. “I think, you know, during these times it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and [have] hope, but this definitely gives me and my family a little bit of hope, to see a family member that we have never met. So definitely hope and that, you know we are going to get through this and we’re able to ‘superarlo’.” ‘Superarlo’ means “overcome it” in Spanish. Diaz explains that this experience is even more impactful given the ongoing prejudice against the Mexican and Latino community.
“It’s a tough time right now, but I’m glad that we’re able to embrace these little moments and be happy for now, and just you know, enjoy it. And be excited and happy about it”. Diaz shares that she is most excited to celebrate her recent engagement with her grandma, smiling and says, “I’m happy to share that with her and that she’ll be able to come to my wedding in the future.” “I’m really grateful for the organization as well, [Raices del Sur] is a superb help and support.”
Then came the moment everyone was waiting for, the arrival of the family. Two large vans pull into the parking structure, hearts begin to pound, eyes start tearing up, and families are about to be united once again. The staff members tried to organize a circle but the family members were too excited.
The wait is finally over and the mission of helping these families reunite has been completed. As families loaded up their vehicles, the Raices del Sur welcoming team hugged each other, and the sun began to set on the caravan of the cars as they drove away.
Raices del Sur’s mission moving forward, continue to increase the success rate of applicants approved for their visitor visas and do what they know best, reunite families. If you are interested in Raices del Sur mission and services you can contact them at Facebook| Raices del Sur to support their efforts, get involved or connect families in need.