SOUTHGATE, MI (WXYZ/CNN) – An Albanian man living in Michigan may be forced to leave his sick wife and children because the government is deporting him, his family says.
Flora Rranxburgaj has multiple sclerosis and recently suffered a stroke. She can’t safely be left alone to care for herself, but she has a loyal husband, Ded Rranxburgaj, who always takes care of her.
"I work, and I try to take care of my family. My wife is very sick,” Ded Rranxburgaj said.
The husband and father works two jobs to support his family and pay for his wife’s medical care. He and his two sons, one who is in college and another who is 14, help Flora Rranxburgaj do everything.
However, Ded Rranxburgaj recently went to an appointment with immigration officials, and his son says they gave him horrific news.
"They were like, ‘You got to leave in three months, buddy,’" said Eric Rranxburgaj, the couple’s 14-year-old son.
Immigration officials say Flora Rranxburgaj would be allowed to stay in the United States for now because she is too sick to travel, but Ded Rranxburgaj has been ordered to make plans to leave in January.
"He's expected to leave his wife here to die by herself and leave his 14-year-old son, who's an American citizen, born and raised here. It's just unconscionable,” said the family’s attorney, George Mann.
The couple say they came to the U.S. after fleeing a communist government in Albania that wouldn’t let them practice their Catholic faith. They sought asylum.
After conditions improved in Albania, they were turned down for asylum, but officials previously allowed the family to stay for humanitarian reasons due to Flora Rranxburgaj’s multiple sclerosis.
"I just cry and cry and cry,” Flora Rranxburgaj said. "Just me and kids and husband. Husband take care of me for lots of years. He is good husband, good father."
Mann says officials can still decide to allow Ded Rranxburgaj to stay in the country. He is hoping people will feel moved by the family’s story and reach out to their senators and representatives.
"It’s just very frustrating because I don't know what to do if my dad is not here,” Eric Rranxburgaj said.
The family says they’re praying for help and hoping for mercy.
Copyright 2017 WXYZ, Rranxburgaj Family via CNN. All rights reserved.
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