Separated by the Border - by Gena Thomas (Paperback)

About the Book

Thomas tells the story of five-year-old Julia, whose harrowing journey with her mother from Honduras to the U.S. took her from cargo trailer to detention center to foster care. Weaving together the stories of birth mother and foster mother, this work shows the human face of the immigrant and refugee, the challenges of the immigration and foster care systems, and the tenacious power of motherly love.

Book Synopsis

In 2017 five-year-old Julia traveled with her mother, Guadalupe, from Honduras to the United States. Her harrowing journey took her through Mexico in the cargo section of a tractor trailer. Then she was separated from her mother, who was held hostage by smugglers who exploited her physically and financially. At the United States border, Julia came through the processing center as an unaccompanied minor after being separated from her stepdad who was deported.

Gena Thomas tells the story of how Julia came to the United States, what she experienced in the system, and what it took to reunite her with her family. A Spanish-speaking former missionary, Gena became Julia's foster mother and witnessed firsthand the ways migrant children experience trauma. Weaving together the stories of birth mother and foster mother, this book shows the human face of the immigrant and refugee, the challenges of the immigration and foster care systems, and the tenacious power of motherly love.

Review Quotes

"Gena Thomas is a maestra tejedor (master weaver) who intertwines the tales of two courageous mothers with the threads of theology, history, and politics to produce a brilliant tapestry that skillfully exposes both the injustice of immigration and the wonder of restoration. Reader beware: this book will necessarily shatter your heart. Yet, it won't produce paralysis. Rather, Separated by the Border will grow your capacity to love beyond boundaries, borders, complexities, and documentation statuses. For the sake of our divided world, I commend this book with hope."

--Jer Swigart, cofounder of the Global Immersion Project, coauthor of Mending the Divides: Creative Love in a Conflicted World

"God commands his people to care for those vulnerable to injustice--particularly, immigrants and children. Gena Thomas and her family faithfully responded to these biblical injunctions by welcoming a five-year-old foster girl from Honduras into their home. In Separated by the Border, Gena weaves together her own story with the story of this precious girl and the brave mother from whom she was separated in the course of a perilous journey to the United States. In the process, she putshuman faces on the complex but often politicized issues of immigration, asylum seekers, and foster care. Separated by the Border is a gripping, gracefully written story that the American church needs to hear."

--Matthew Soerens, US director of church mobilization, World Relief, coauthor of Welcoming the Stranger

"In Separated by the Border, Gena Thomas skillfully weaves a story of heartbreak and hope in a world overflowing with cultural chaos. Yet this story is real, filled with helpful context and pointed commentary about little Julia and her family's lived experience. I found myself drawn in from the first chapter as Gena helped me understand and care about the complex terrain of family separation, asking me to follow her own brave soul into the place of being willing to do something about it. I pray this book makes it into the hands of those wrestling with their heads and hearts over immigration, deportation, separation, and reunification. Gena's words will help us rise and do what is right!"

--Belinda Bauman, executive director of One Million Thumbprints, author of Brave Souls

"The immigrant experience in the United States is often seen from the perspective of depersonalizing statistics and dangerous caricatures. If we wish to make any progress in navigating through this massive conversation, we need real and compellingstories that expose us to the true and troubling realities many undergo, while offering a way forward. This is why I'm grateful for Separated by the Border. Gena Thomas tells a remarkable story and helps us see that hospitality is a powerfully subversive, prophetic act of God's grace."

--Rich Villodas, lead pastor of New Life Fellowship, New York City

"Today's faith-based communities are being called to help God's children. Gena Thomas's story of how she answered this call is both powerful and inspirational. At the same time, she sheds light and brings awareness to the realities of how children continue to suffer around the globe and how we can all help even the least of these, God's children in need. Separated by the Border is a book that will empower and inspire the reader."

--John DeGarmo, director of The Foster Care Institute, author of Faith and Foster Care

"In Separated by the Border, we witness the fierce, unwavering love of two mothers. In their eyes, we see glimpses of the heart for all of God's beloved children. Sobering and compelling, their story inspires us to step more fully into a life of dangerous and courageous love."

--Peter Greer, president and chief executive officer of HOPE International

About the Author

Gena Thomas is a writer and speaker who works at a nonprofit that empowers others through holistic development. She served as a missionary in northern Mexico for four years, holds a master's degree in international development, and is the author of A Smoldering Wick: Igniting Missions Work with Sustainable Practices. She lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with her husband, Andrew, and their two children.

Michelle Ferrigno Warren is the President of Virago Strategies, a consulting group which provides strategic engagement and project management support for churches and non-profits stepping more deeply into the work of public justice. She has been working in Christian community development for over 30 years utilizing her skills as an educator, worship leader, non-profit manager, public policy specialist, and faith-rooted organizer and activist. She helped found Open Door Ministries in Denver, Colorado, and is an adjunct professor at Denver Seminary and a Senior Fellow with The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute. She is a fierce advocate for justice and has shared much of her journey toward public engagement and activism in her books The Power of Proximity, Moving Beyond Awareness to Action, and Step Into the Good Work of Kingdom Justice. Michelle and her husband, David, live in Denver, Colorado, and have three adult children.