Alondra Sotelo Garcia, like many Americans, has recently been inundated with troubling headlines. Reports of masked immigration agents making bold arrests and community members disappearing without warning have left her concerned, especially for her immigrant parents. As the middle child of immigrants, Alondra felt compelled to take action. She began tracking her father’s iPhone location, submitted her two weeks’ notice at her job, and expressed her desire to help run the vineyard management company he established after years in the wine industry.

“Hey, I think I need to step in now with you, Dad, and help you and learn,” Alondra recalls telling her father. “If something happens, are you just gonna leave nine people without a job?” She had no idea how soon that question would become a reality. Just days later, her father called from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland, urging her with a simple message: “You know what to do.”

Moises Sotelo, Alondra’s father and a cornerstone of the Oregon wine industry, was detained in June. His arrest triggered national outrage and a surge of community support, but it ultimately could not prevent his deportation to Mexico in July. Soon after, Alondra’s mother, Irma, voluntarily left to join him.

Since their departure, Alondra has taken charge of her father’s business, finalized his affairs, and supported her parents in establishing their new life in Mexico. She now faces the daunting task of navigating her own life without her family.

As Alondra approaches the new year, she confronts significant challenges: a fractured family, a business to manage, and bills to pay—both for herself and her parents. During the holiday season, she straddled two worlds—first flying to Mexico to surprise her parents before returning to Oregon for a Christmas dinner with her aunt and uncle, followed by late-night TV with her brother in their typically bustling home.

After her father’s arrest, Alondra left her remote job handling shipping logistics for a dental supply company and moved back to her family home in Newberg, Oregon. She assumed control of Moises’s company during a downturn in the global wine market and with minimal experience, making the transition particularly challenging.

“Sometimes I don’t even know what the hell I’m doing with work,” Alondra admitted this winter. “I haven’t been doing this for 30-plus years like Dad has. I’m not going to bring 30 years of experience into three months.” The family home now doubles as an office, with employees coming and going. Alondra collaborates closely with a former mentee of her father’s, who assists with fieldwork, and an office administrator. She credits them for keeping the business afloat during these tumultuous months.

The vineyard operates on a demanding schedule, with each season bringing an array of tasks—from winter pruning to summer mildew prevention. Every vine is tended to by hand, and Alondra refuses to abandon the work her father dedicated himself to. “I’m not going to leave this work and lay it to the ground and leave it for dead, because that would be very unfair for him,” she stated resolutely.

Despite challenges, Alondra remains determined. Although ICE previously alleged her father entered the U.S. in 2006 with a DUI conviction, local district attorneys claimed no record existed. Meanwhile, Alondra reported that both her parents had submitted immigration cases to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The increase in ICE activity took a toll on the community. A week before her father’s detention, agents apprehended one of the company’s employees, causing a ripple effect that would not be felt for months. Alondra described that moment as a “wake-up call.”

Tracking her father’s whereabouts through the ICE detention system meant navigating a complex and opaque process, which included a visit to a facility in the Arizona desert. Although she managed to reunite with him in Mexico after his deportation, the experience underscored the fragility of their situation. “I don’t think I’m gonna ever get these moments with Dad back,” Alondra reflected on the journey.

Her efforts extended beyond business management; she also supported her mother, who was struggling with depression, in leaving the U.S. to reunite with her husband. Alondra set up a GoFundMe campaign to help stabilize their finances and secure housing for her parents in Mexico—a significant adjustment for them after three decades away.

As Alondra shoulders new responsibilities, her family dynamic has shifted. With her younger brother now 18 and her older brother with five children, the pressure falls primarily on Alondra. The wine industry in Oregon is facing challenges, including a decline in global sales and the repercussions of ICE raids on the labor force.

Dave Specter, co-owner of Bells Up Winery, emphasized Moises’s positive impact on the community. “This is the kind of guy that you want your children to grow up to be. So when we lose those people, it does nothing but make our society worse,” he stated.

The situation is dire; a Yamhill County commissioner remarked that the fallout from the raids affects entire communities. “I know kids that are afraid to go to school,” he expressed, emphasizing the broad implications of government policy on public sentiment.

Furthermore, Alondra’s challenges persist. She recently had to lay off an employee due to reduced workloads—weeks later, that same employee’s family was affected by deportation.

“It just absolutely tore me apart,” she recounted. The emotional toll has brought her friends closer, as they share experiences of having loved ones impacted by ICE raids. Alondra has become a source of support for them, advising fellow children of immigrants on how to navigate these turbulent times.