As she blows out the candles on her cake, 32-year-old Blanca Jimenez makes just one wish: the safe return of her father, Jorge Jimenez, who is in ICE custody at the Adelanto Detention Center.

“We just want him back; his detention has greatly affected us and our community,” Jimenez said. December is usually full of celebrations for her family; not only do they prepare for Christmas gatherings, but they also celebrate her birthday. It's a day she usually spends with her dad, mom, and two brothers. But that changed a few days ago when, on December 11, her father, Jorge, 53, and her cousin were detained by Immigration agents while working as gardeners in Upland. "It was around 12:30 pm when my cousin, who has legal status and works with my dad, called me directly, something he never does," Blanca recounts, her voice breaking. "Immediately, I had a bad feeling; I knew something wasn't right." And then her cousin said, "I'm sorry, but they've taken your dad." Jimenez said that at that moment her heart broke, and she quickly alerted her family. “That was the hardest thing I had to hear because we, as a family, knew that, unfortunately, they were putting themselves at risk by going to work,” Jimenez says. “But my father is the kind of person who says, ‘We have to eat,’ so he kept going out to work.” According to Jimenez’s cousin, they were both working at a house in Upland when they noticed a white pickup truck circling the neighborhood. Although it seemed a little strange, they didn’t think much of it, as after a few minutes the truck was gone. Then lunchtime arrived, and the two decided to go get something to eat; Blanca’s father, Jorge, decided to drive his work truck. “As soon as they left the neighborhood, they were stopped,” Jimenez says. “According to my cousin, they turned on their lights and sirens, ordered them out of the work truck, and separated them.”The incident happened so fast that his cousin didn't have time to record or document the arrest because he felt paralyzed and surprised by what was happening. According to the family, the white pickup truck they had noticed that morning was indeed an immigration vehicle, and they were accompanied by more than one vehicle. She recounts that before the agents put her father in the patrol car, Jorge put down his wallet and tried to give his cousin instructions on what to do with the work truck, since the young man doesn't know how to drive a manual transmission. It was then that the agents left with Jorge in custody, while his relative waited for a worker to help him return the truck to the Jimenez family. But shortly after leaving the scene of the arrest, the immigration sirens sounded again, and they were stopped once more. “The immigration agents began questioning the driver, asked for his information, and then let them go,” Blanca said. “We don’t know if they were being followed or not, because my cousin said they took something from the back of the truck before being let go, but in any case, it seemed strange to them that they were stopped a second time.”

The family says Jorge was taken to San Bernardino before being temporarily transferred to the detention center in Los Angeles, where he remained for several days without access to showers.

“Keep in mind that he was working before he was detained, so he was dirty; he said it was very cold there and that there were too many people detained with him,” Jimenez says. “My father is one of those people who always has to be doing something, so being in that center in Los Angeles was starting to affect him.”

Then, that weekend, he was transferred to the Adelanto Detention Center, where he was finally able to shower and says he gets two hours of fresh air a day. The family has been able to communicate with Jorge and says that, although he has only been in detention for a week, they can already notice a difference in him.

According to information from the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice, since January they have reported approximately 295 people detained in the Inland Empire, a number they were able to compile thanks to documentation from them and other rapid response groups. Jorge Jimenez, 53, is one of many cases of arrests during a traffic stop that have not been publicly reported or documented, unlike many that are often recorded by community residents. “My father is a very strong person, and hearing him on the phone, with a lump in his throat, trying to talk to my mother, was very difficult,” says the young woman. “Because he’s the kind of person you’ll never see cry,So having to hear him almost break down has been the hardest part.”

Although her mother works, she said her father was the main breadwinner for the family, as she has limitations due to health problems. She says her father is a good person who has worked as a gardener for over 30 years and has always been very involved in his community.

A person who is always willing to help others. He and his wife were leaders of a marriage group that helped couples at their church, helped families in need, and used to play soccer with the neighborhood kids.

“My father is very well known for how kind he is to others,” Jimenez said proudly. “And seeing how many people have come to my mother’s house to offer her words of encouragement shows how much my father has touched so many people with his kindness.”

Normally, Jimenez’s family would be preparing for the Christmas holidays that are celebrated after their birthday. He says they usually gather at an uncle's house, all surrounded by tamales, music, and family, but this year will be different. Although they're hoping for a Christmas miracle, they say they're prepared to fight for their father until he's free.

For now, they're raising funds on GoFundMe and say that any money they raise will go toward the lawyer, who will help the family, and the rest will go toward the bail they hope their father will receive. He says they never thought they'd be in this position and that he doesn't understand the logic of the arrests.

“People like my father are just here to work,” Jimenez exclaimed. “And no matter how much they want to say they're just trying to arrest criminals, let them explain why they took someone who worked and has helped so many people?”

Note produced under the California Local News Fellowship program at the University of Berkeley.

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