On Mexico's Children's Day, 3 Minutes of Family Time as Border Gates Open Chris Stone - Times of San Diego
go to original May 1, 2016

Gabriela Esperaza (in red) visits with her sister Susanna (with baby) and mother Maria for a childrens day celebration. (Chris Stone)

For nine years, the most the mother and daughter could do was touch pinky fingers through a small hole in the U.S.-Mexico border. Neither could cross, so they stayed separated.

But that divide ended Saturday — even if for only three minutes — as Gabriela Esparaza stepped just inside Mexico to embrace her mother, Maria, and sister, Susanna. They hugged as tears fell.

Jannet Castanon, who also had been apart from her mother for nine years, was the first person to walk past the heavy gate.

“It was amazing to feel my mom and touch her again, smell her, everything,” Castanon said. “She’s still the same lady, strong.”

The reunion was thanks to the group Border Angels and U.S. Border Patrol, who opened the gate at Friendship Park (at Border Field State Park) that separates two countries and parents from their children.

Mexico’s Children’s Day was the occasion, but it was the third time the Border Angels brought family members together for a brief connection through the “Opening the Door of Hope” event.

Toys were distributed to children on both sides of the border.

Read the rest at Times of San Diego

Related: This Is What It Looked Like When the U.S.-Mexico Border Opened for 3 Minutes (Fusion)

Related: After 9 Years, Family Reunites at the U.S.-Mexico Border (CNNMoney)

Related: Beyond the Border Wall’s Two Sides, a Complex Issue (San Diego Union Tribune)

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