Driven by faith<\/strong><\/p>\nBack in Graham, almost everything reminded Blanca of the man she loved: the high school parking lot where they taught their oldest son to drive, the arcade where they had the children\u2019s birthday parties and their favorite family-owned restaurant in the town\u2019s historic square.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She and Victor would have the occasional date night at the Graham Drive In Theatre. Other nights, the couple would pick up Braum\u2019s ice cream and drive to the plot of land they bought south of town, sit under the stars and envision what their forever home would look like.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Forever had suddenly shifted.<\/p>\n
Blanca was parenting their five children \u2014 ages 16, 13, 9, 6 and 2 \u2014 alone, maintaining her job as a nurse practitioner. While she had help from her mother, the man who took her sons under his wing and mastered the art of styling his little girls\u2019 hair was gone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She turned to a longtime friend for advice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She met Isabel Smith in 2008 when Blanca was pregnant with her first child. She enrolled in Parents as Teachers, a statewide program that partners with schools to support young parents through child development and completing their education.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Smith, who directed the program in Graham, watched Blanca grow from a teen parent to a nurse practitioner to a community leader. She motivated Blanca through North Central Texas College and asked her to join the school\u2019s foundation board after graduation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Smith could tell Blanca was always conscientious about doing the best for her family, she said. With Victor gone, Blanca sought Smith\u2019s parenting advice once more.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is obviously a trauma you\u2019re going through \u2026 so remember, you want to keep the same schedule. Everything in their lives has to stay consistent,\u201d Smith told Blanca about the children. \u201cThey need nothing else to change. \u2026 You keep them in the same routines,\u201d Smith said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca listened. The family had meals together and went to church together. Blanca continued working.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Family milestones passed by: birthdays, Mother\u2019s Day, Father\u2019s Day. The children spent these holidays with their father on video call and received mailed drawings from Victor made in the detention center.<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0719-0720-Blanca-07-.jpg\")
Celeste looks out the window of her home in Graham after her grandmother helped her get ready for church on July 20, 2025. Celeste went to church with her two aunts, mom and sisters. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
Each of the kids took their father\u2019s detainment differently. The girls thought about how they didn\u2019t get to tell him goodbye. The sons asked Victor questions during their video calls. What did he eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?\u00a0<\/p>\n
The 2-year-old, Celeste, often looked out the window, pointing her small finger at trucks driving by the neighborhood. \u201cDada,\u201d she would say.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca\u2019s plate was full in every direction. She sought to learn more about immigration law through videos online. She hired attorneys to help Victor\u2019s case and worked two jobs in the medical field to cover legal costs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca didn\u2019t think her body showed signs of stress, but it did. She was diagnosed with a chronic autoimmune disease called lupus shortly after Victor was detained. Inflammation caused by lupus can affect joints, skin, organs and cause fatigue. On top of everything, Blanca now needed to manage her new diagnosis.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though I don\u2019t feel like (I\u2019m overwhelmed), because I try to just lean on God, my body feels it,\u201d Blanca said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even though she and her family longed for Victor\u2019s return, good things were coming out of his detainment as the family strengthened their faith, she said.<\/p>\n
Victor was preaching to other detainees. Back in Graham, Blanca and the kids prayed together with Victor over calls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca also turned to Emily Klement of Fort Worth, who she met in 2009 when Klement worked at North Central Texas College.<\/p>\n
Klement\u2019s initial impression of Blanca was of someone who exuded joy, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe did not look like a lot of young single moms that I had worked with who were just really down on themselves and looked hopeless. She was hopeful. \u2026 She just comes from being such a believer all her life,\u201d Klement said.<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0719-Blanca-03-.jpg\")
Adaly flips on a trampoline in her backyard in Graham on July 19, 2025. The family dog, Saint, likes to watch over the girls as they play outside. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
At the time, Klement was a dean and associate vice president for academic and strategic partnerships for the college\u2019s Bowie campus and led the initiative to bring a campus to Graham. Klement and other school officials created a pathway for high school graduates like Blanca to become a licensed vocational nurse through the college.<\/p>\n
Blanca struggled to afford college on top of household expenses. When Klement retired from North Central Texas College, she became an executive director at Catholic Charities Fort Worth in Wichita Falls. Klement helped Blanca and Victor join the nonprofit\u2019s Education Navigation program, which helped the couple with expenses and budgeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca and Victor thrived with the charity\u2019s support, Klement said, and she was heartbroken to learn of Victor\u2019s detainment. She worried about the trauma Victor\u2019s absence inflicted on the kids and worked to connect with people in Graham who could offer free counseling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca and Victor\u2019s situation represents a growing number of families feeling the strain of the mass deportations sweeping the country, Klement said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s getting harder and harder for them to be successful. \u2026 We\u2019re putting up blockades that they don\u2019t need, and it\u2019s not necessary,\u201d she said. \u201cThey certainly don\u2019t need them. But that\u2019s not the America I know or knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first week of Victor\u2019s detainment, his colleagues at XCaliber knew only that he had to \u201cstep out,\u201d coworker Tristan Hampton said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victor started working at XCaliber in 2020 as a welder. Two years later, he was promoted to a production supervisor role, in which he collaborated with Hampton, who is in the company\u2019s sales department.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She found out Victor was detained a week later. Hampton didn\u2019t know Victor was undocumented. Learning that didn\u2019t change the fact that everyone at the jobsite wanted him back in Graham.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victor was one of the few in management who spoke Spanish. His bilingual skills were needed often to translate messages from leadership to clients and employees, Hampton said. He was the one who would grill for workplace holiday events. He was the kind of boss who would heat up his lunch and eat in the workroom with the rest of the guys, she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As time went on, members of Victor\u2019s team wrote letters to him in the detention center. The business got help with other employees for translation support while holding onto his job in anticipation of his return, Hampton said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victor is a good Samaritan and demonstrated good character for his children both in and out of the workplace, Hampton said. When a longtime employee died, Victor brought his sons to the memorial.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0719-0720-Blanca-02-.jpg\")
Adaly lifts up her little sister, Celeste, so she can throw a basketball in her backyard in Graham on July 19, 2025. Celeste is the youngest of five, and has grown a lot since her father was detained in March. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
\u201cAny day when he comes home, he will have a job at XCaliber. Everyone misses him. We still talk about him,\u201d Hampton said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Easter came and went with Victor in detention. That following weekend was Graham\u2019s annual Run for the Children event, one of the town\u2019s most beloved traditions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The 10K, 5K and 1K races aim to bring awareness and raise money to support Virginia\u2019s House \u2013 A Family Resource Center in Graham and its satellite office, Dr. Goodall\u2019s House in Breckenridge. The nonprofits support children who may be experiencing neglect and abuse through prevention and mentorship programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For years, race day was a family event. Blanca and Victor would wake up before sunrise to set up, often enlisting their older kids to help. As the nonprofit celebrated the event\u2019s 20th year on April 26, Victor wasn\u2019t there.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca serves on Run for the Children\u2019s board of directors and was in charge of registration for the race. Even in Victor\u2019s absence, she was there to help others, said event founder Dora Cawley.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are leading their own children by example, by trying to help our community. They were very vital members.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0826-GutierrezinGraham-36-.jpg\")
Adaly, the oldest daughter of Victor and Blanca, goes through letters and cards her father sent her while in the detention center on Aug. 26, 2025. Victor drew photos and typography for the kids\u2019 birthdays since he couldn\u2019t be there in person. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
Immigration law saga<\/strong><\/p>\nBlanca juggled life without Victor \u2014 and sought ways to bring him home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She contacted multiple attorneys, but it felt as if nobody wanted to take on the case, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are telling me it\u2019s not possible. He\u2019s going to end up getting deported. And so I\u2019m like, \u2018OK, I need somebody that\u2019s going to try. Can you at least just try? That\u2019s all I\u2019m asking for.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Chicago-based immigration attorney William McLean and Dallas-based criminal attorney Christine Biederman took his case.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Biederman worked to set aside Victor\u2019s prior misdemeanors. She discovered for both convictions, Victor\u2019s attorneys had failed to provide immigration advice. In the courts, she argued that Victor was not guilty of the convictions because of ineffective assistance from counsel, meaning that his attorneys at the time didn\u2019t properly advise him of the immigration consequences of a guilty plea.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wichita County and Young County judges ruled in Victor\u2019s favor, effectively vacating his 2014 misdemeanor on July 30 as well as his 2018 misdemeanor on Aug. 7.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Biederman won her cases, effectively giving post-conviction relief for both of Victor\u2019s prior offenses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the immigration side, McLean worked toward canceling his removal proceedings. Victor had renewed his DACA status every two years since 2013. It was only because immigration officials had contact with him at the airport after international travel that they decided to put him in removal proceedings, McLean said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On Aug. 20, an immigration judge called for a hearing on Victor\u2019s case. McLean showed that Victor\u2019s convictions had been removed, and the government made a motion to dismiss Victor\u2019s deportation case.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After six months, Victor\u2019s case was closed \u2014 but the family wasn\u2019t sure what would happen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then two days after the case was dismissed, Victor stopped showing up in ICE\u2019s online detainee locator system.\u00a0<\/p>\n
McLean was nervous.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As part of the Trump administration\u2019s crackdown on immigration, federal officials were speeding up deportations through expedited removals. The process allows immigration officials to quickly deport certain noncitizens without a formal hearing before a judge. McLean worried it might happen to Victor, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople with DACA are being deported, just like anybody else, as if you did not have it, as if it did not exist. \u2026 DACA means nothing. DACA means nothing anymore,\u201d McLean said.<\/p>\n
Four days after the hearing, McLean heard from Victor. He was still at the detention center in New Mexico, but no one had said anything to him about when or whether he would leave.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The next day, on Aug. 25, Blanca emailed immigration officials a copy of the court order and asked for the date of his release.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At 3:30 p.m. that day McLean learned Victor was being released five days after his case was dismissed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The clampdown on immigration arrests has been \u201can aggressiveness from the government I\u2019ve never seen,\u201d said McLean, who has been working in the field for 15 years. Blanca and Victor were willing to go the distance to get him home, something other families may not be willing or able to do, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir resilience, their Christianity, it got them through this,\u201d McLean said.<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0719-Blanca-04-.jpg\")
Blanca and her daughters head inside after playing in their backyard in Graham July 19, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
Homeward bound<\/p>\n
Victor was dropped off at the El Paso International Airport with only his Bible, some notes and the sermons he kept throughout his detainment. He had his passport but no money.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca texted everyone she knew asking how to get Victor a last-minute flight to North Texas. Without Blanca being there in person, she couldn\u2019t purchase a ticket on his behalf, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victor asked around the airport for help. He came across what appeared to Victor to be an older Latino couple. He borrowed a phone to call his wife. Blanca promised to pay them back immediately if they bought Victor a ticket home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The couple agreed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c(The stranger) bought the ticket, and he was very nervous about it \u2014 wasn\u2019t very sure\u00a0\u2014 but he did it,\u201d Victor said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blanca immediately paid the couple back, grateful that someone was willing to help get her husband home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
An earlier flight that day was delayed, which perfectly aligned so that Victor could catch it. Maybe it was a coincidence, but Victor and Blanca believed God had something to do with it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t know where to go when he landed at DFW Airport. He still didn\u2019t have a phone. He walked over to baggage claim and exited the terminal \u2014 that\u2019s when he saw her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAh, it\u2019s real,\u201d Victor thought.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their eyes met. Victor looked thinner than when she last saw him. Blanca also looked thinner to him. They hugged. Once they got into the car, Blanca and Victor cried and hugged some more. They were all happy tears, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
About midnight, they arrived home in Graham.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The couple debated whether to wake up the kids or wait until the morning. They started off with the boys, who quickly woke up and hugged their father.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The couple went to bed that night in relief. Their first night together punctuated the six months that Blanca slept in their bed alone, something that never got easier as time went on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At home, Victor remembered how much he enjoyed hot showers and sleeping in complete darkness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GrahamStairs-.jpg\")
Bella runs after her father to hold onto him in front of their home in Graham on Aug. 26, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
\u2018Needle in a haystack\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\nThe next morning, 6-year-old Bella walked out into the hallway to talk to her mom. She wasn\u2019t aware of her father standing on the staircase above her. Victor called out her name. As she tilted her head up, she saw him and froze. She wondered if she was still dreaming.<\/p>\n
To test her theory, she raced over to Victor and jumped in his arms. At that moment, Bella was caught in Victor\u2019s embrace. It wasn\u2019t a dream. Moments later, 9-year-old Adaly heard her dad and raced out into the hall and joined Bella. Celeste was dancing. Soon, the whole family was together.<\/p>\n
Blanca and Victor see the tumultuous journey as a testament to their faith that God would work things out. The couple turned to many scriptures during their separation. Victor dived into the Book of Romans, reading how God offered salvation to everyone who believes. Blanca felt drawn to the story of Job, a prosperous man who remained faithful even after losing everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victor remains a DACA recipient and plans to get his green card. Along with his Bible and notes, his journal documenting his journey while in detention rests on the dining table.<\/p>\n
He heard the stories of the men he met inside. While some of them have reunited with their families in the United States, others remained in the detention center or were deported, he said. He recorded their stories in his journal and thinks someday he could write a book.<\/p>\n
\u201cShedding the light on at least a small portion of it would be amazing, and just have people know the stories. It\u2019s not as easy as everyone thinks,\u201d Victor said. \u201cObviously, nobody might think it\u2019s easy, but it\u2019s not as quick, it\u2019s not as efficient or as fair as it needs to be.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He plans to get in touch with the men he met about sharing their stories.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m probably like a needle in a haystack with my situation that I was able to come home the way I did. And there\u2019s a lot of people that aren\u2019t that lucky.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0826-GutierrezinGraham-34-.jpg\")
Blanca and Victor Gutierrez pose for a photo with their family in Graham on Aug. 26, 2025. The family has not been together as a whole for months while Victor was detained. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n
Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at marissa.greene@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\nAt the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n
Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\nRepublish This Story<\/p>\n
![\"Creative](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1750614464_36_cc-by-nd-4.0.png\"\/)
<\/a><\/p>\nRepublishing is free for noncommercial entities. Commercial entities are prohibited without a licensing agreement. Contact us for details. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While slurping rice noodles and steamy broth, Blanca DeArcos and Victor Hugo Gutierrez-Flores shared their first date over…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":224725,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5138],"tags":[5229,51485,7371,7372,409,70207,5615,7375,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-224724","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fort-worth","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-catholic-charities-fort-worth","10":"tag-fort-worth","11":"tag-fortworth","12":"tag-immigration","13":"tag-in-depth","14":"tag-lead","15":"tag-tarrant-county","16":"tag-texas","17":"tag-tx","18":"tag-united-states","19":"tag-united-states-of-america","20":"tag-unitedstates","21":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","22":"tag-us","23":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115199536671049735","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224724"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224724\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/triptych.jpg\")
Archival photos of Blanca and Victor Gutierrez included in the folder for immigration officials. (Courtesy photos | Blanca Gutierrez)\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Navigating_DACA_15.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0826-GutierrezinGraham-11-.jpg\")
Cars line the roads through downtown Graham on Aug. 26, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0719-0720-Blanca-16-.jpg\")
Bella points at a photo of her as a younger child with her father Victor Gutierrez in Graham on July 20, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n