This Family Should Be Allowed To Stay

Published by Will Doolittle on May 26, 2026

Pilar Cardona and her 15-year-old daughter, Valeria, were on the love seat in my library; Edisson, the father, on the couch next to me; 9-year-old Hanna on the floor, acting out gymnastics moves with her Barbie doll.

Richard Leach, a retired doctor from Queensbury and board member of Adirondack Regional Immigration Collaborative, sat on a chair in the corner.

Pilar and Edisson were speaking in Spanish, Valeria translating.

“We just love the people,” Valeria said, as her mother nodded. “It’s a beautiful nation.”

“From the first time he came here, the arms were open,” Valeria said, translating for her father.

Then Hanna lifted her head and smiled.

“I love it!” she said.

They’ve been living in Queensbury, the kids going to school, the family running a thriving business, for two and a half years. They are from Colombia and came here legally. They employ three American citizens. They pay taxes.

But they’ve been on the precipice of deportation since they were notified last year their legal status had been revoked. And they’re in a bureaucratic trap.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services revoked their status while requiring evidence of the source of money they invested in their business.

Because of their country’s association with the narcotics trade, Colombian immigrants who invest in a U.S. business can be subject to extra scrutiny. The Cardonas have documents from the National Directorate of Taxes and Customs, Colombia’s equivalent of the Internal Revenue Service, that detail their finances.

The documents show their money came from personal savings and the sale of their car and some land in Colombia.

But USCIS refuses to review their documents while their status is revoked.

“It is normal to ask these questions of immigrants from Colombia.” Valeria said, translating for her father. “But it is not normal that we do not get a chance to show our documents.”

Pilar was a practicing dentist in Colombia and Edisson a plumber who worked on new home construction.

They moved here in 2023.

Edisson was familiar with Queensbury, because his sister used to live here, and he made periodic visits to see her, sometimes staying for a month or longer.

“I always wanted to live here,” he said.

He researched business opportunities and attended a convention of American Leak Detection franchisees, making contact with CEO Patrick DeSouza.

American Leak Detection has franchises nationwide but had no upstate New York franchise until the Cardonas established one two and a half years ago. With Pilar in the office and Edisson on the road — and Valeria helping — the business has flourished.

Last year, they were honored by the company at its annual convention in Philadelphia with an award for the fastest-growing new franchise. The family celebrated like Rocky, running together up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Tuesday evening, they laughed at the memory as they collaborated to answer my questions, the parents consulting each other in Spanish while Valeria switched back and forth between languages.

Hanna stayed busy on the floor, pulling outfits on and off her doll and setting up Barbie’s balance beam.

Ringo, our dog, sniffed every member of the family while fanning the group with his tail.

The hour and a half we spent together was such a pleasure. But looming over our talk was the possibility of the family’s deportation, even though they have followed the law and meet the requirements of the E-2 business/investment visa they’re seeking.

Not a single reason exists for forcing them to leave, while many reasons support their case for staying.

They’re at the mercy now of an immigration judge at a court date not yet scheduled.

Valeria is a sophomore, Hanna a third-grader and they love school. They came with no English but understand nearly every word now. Valeria’s fluency is extraordinary.

Just $6,000 is left to pay on the cost of their franchise, but they may lose it. They’ve made arrangements for its sale if they have to go.

If they return to Colombia, “he would have to start from the beginning,” Valeria said, of her father.

He would consider moving elsewhere, like Spain, Edisson said.

“But we want to stay here,” he said.

Looking at them on Tuesday, observing their grace and sincerity, it seemed impossible our country could be so hard-hearted and so foolish.

With their abilities and their devotion to each other, the Cardonas will thrive elsewhere if they have to. But our country will not thrive if we expel without cause skilled, law-abiding families like theirs who want nothing more than to prosper as Americans.