“She was born in Colombia and came here with her parents when she was four...a few years ago, her mom returned to Colombia for medical reasons while Daniela was in the process of legalizing her status.”
It’s not clear how the parents arrived here, which could make a huge difference in this case.
-If her parents were living here legally as permanent resident aliens, then it could be just a matter of a legal technicality (i.e. returning home) that threw a monkey wrench into the works. In that case, I’d be sympathetic as the parents were playing by the rules for themselves and in making their daughter a citizen. I don’t want to see a bright kid’s future ruined by some bureaucratic pitfall.
-On the other hand, if they came here illegally...the kid’s going to have to pay the price. That would be a rough deal for the daughter, who seems like a good kid. The parents made this problem happen, though. If they’re here illegally, they probably haven’t been paying taxes for the last 14 years, including the ones that paid for their daughter’s education.
She's being forced to go back to Columbia.
She can parley that into a million dollar business, if she's smart about it and focuses on the possibilities instead of whining.
If I were her, I'd be hanging around the coffee broker houses.
/johnny