Meet Your Neighbor: Enzo & Genaro Jaramillo

Meet Your Neighbor: Enzo & Genaro Jaramillo

Genaro (Right): I was born in Peru, and I came to this country at the age of three. I grew up in Elmhurst so when people ask me where I’m from, I say, "I’m from Queens.”

The day I heard my DACA application was accepted, I was smiling so big. When you get news like that, you feel like you've achieved something. You feel accepted. You feel proud of yourself.

In five years, I’ll be finishing school and going into journalism. I think the DACA program is very useful for people who want to live in other places. Once I heard they wanted to end it, I felt very upset. I kept asking, “Why is this happening?" I think everyone should be welcome in the United States.

Enzo (Left): I was born in Peru and moved here when I was 2 years old.

I see in the news that our president is changing a lot and making things difficult for people like me and my brother. When it came time to renew our DACA status, we needed support with the application and fees. The staff at QCH helped us so much. They walked us through the paperwork and waived the $1,000 fee.

I have Dreamer friends who I refer to QCH. I tell them, "Don't be discouraged by the changes that are happening. Look for help. That's what got us through.