In God's hands
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Friday, May 11, 2007 | 
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No Comments [ Add Comment ]By Jesus Lopez Jr.
Standard-Examiner staff
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By Jesus Lopez Jr.
Standard-Examiner staff
OGDEN -- For Jose Corado, everything is in the hands of God.
His health, his future, everything.
Today is the deadline for Corado to leave the United States under a deportation order and return to Guatemala, a country he has not seen since he was 8.
As the time approaches, the 24-year-old colon cancer patient waits with uncertainty. His last hopes of staying in the U.S. depend on whether petitions for a stay of deportation or deferred actionareaccepted.
"I still do notknow," Coradosaid Thursday morning. "I'm down to the wire."
All he has now is his faith.
"If it's God's purpose for me to live, I put it in his hands. I make my decisions according to faith, not the logistics of the situation," Corado said. "It gives me a positive outlook."
In an effort to get the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to reconsider his case, Corado has worked with Norma Tinubu, of the New York Legal Assistance Group, for the past 21/2 weeks.
The nonprofit group has worked with others fighting to stay in the country while facing health issues, but none as sick as Corado.
"This is a man who's had a relationship with this physician since 2001. This is advanced cancer, and he needs the continuity of care," said Randye Retkin, director of legal health for the assistance group.
Corado is hoping for a stay of deportation, which will allow him to work in the U.S. and work to repeal the deportation order.
However, he has had to face the last leg of his immigration battle without the help of his dad, a Baptist minister named Raul, his mother, Magda, and sister Ana.
On April 30, Jose watched his parents board a flight to Guatemala. Raul and Magda Corado left the country as deportees to be with Ana, who was deported in early April.
"It's been really difficult," Jose Corado said. "I know they're just a phone call away, but it's not the same as being with them here. You still have that sense of comfort with your friends, but it's not the same."
In 1991, Raul and Magda, fearing for the safety of the family, fled Guatemala with their three children.
Although they came with tourist visas, the family worked to establish residency. All of the family members got Social Security numbers, and after many years of paying attorneys and filing paperwork, Raul obtained a religious visa.
The surprise came when immigration officials arrested and deported Ana. The rest of the family discovered they, too, were under orders for deportation.
Their oldest daughter, who did not want to be interviewed for the story, received U.S. citizenship and will remain with her husband and children in the U.S.
With all of the uncertainty in Corado's life, he decided not to begin a new round of chemotherapy scheduled to begin May 4.
"To me, it didn't seem rational for me to take only one session and then leave the country," he said.
If he does return to Guatemala, Corado said, he does not plan to continue treatment there either.
"If I don't do it here, I'd be crazy to do it there."
Instead, Corado said he will pray that God helps him through.
"My faith kicks in as well," Corado said. "God still has something in store for me."
But there is also some pragmatism in putting his health into the hands of a higher power.
Corado said he has a cousin whose husband has brain cancer. She explained to him the difficulty of getting treatment in Guatemala. The treatment is expensive, with payment required up-front.
"My cousin said there is no chance to survive in Guatemala even if you do have the money," Corado said.
However, even if he managed to get the money, he does not think his chances are good.
He explained if he moved elsewhere in the U.S., it would take doctors a month to study his case before they could treat him.
"If I took all my files from the Huntsman Cancer Institute down to Guatemala, it would probably take three times that," Corado said.
If he leaves, he will leave 16 years of memories and friends. One of those friends is his girlfriend, Kimber Peart.
"It's a really hard realization to know that we will not be together," Peart said Thursday. "I'm so glad we've been able to have this relationship that we've had and we've been able to grow through that relationship."
Kimber has been with Corado as he faced both positive and negative reactions from the community.
"I think the people that know Jose, his faith and the love of Christ are there to support him," Peart said. "It's unfortunate that there are people who do not know that they are filled with the enemy, with ignorance and with hate, that they do not know that because they do not know the truth."
Corado said his experience has taught him not to judge others before he gets to know them better. "It's made me that much more humble."
In Guatemala, Raul, Magda and Ana are struggling to adjust.
"There is a lot of insecurity. There is a lot of danger. Things are not right here," Magda said. "It is worse than it was in 1991. Things are difficult here economically and for your physical safety."
The family hopes to settle in Antigua, a tourist town in Guatemala that may provide Ana job opportunities.
"It is costing us a lot to get situated," Magda said. "The rent is more expensive than in Utah."
The family does have a glimmer of hope.
On Monday, Raul and Magda have an appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City. Magda said there is a chance that they can return to the U.S. under Raul's religious visa.
Until then, the family is also putting everything in the hands of God.
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