Sergio

Born in Portugal.

American

Sergio is an unexpected package. Calm, kind, and a jokester but only in a way that’s uplifting and encouraging.

If you sit with him, he’ll ask you how your day is going, and truly mean it when he asks how you’re feeling. It’s just his personality. He’s a dad to three kids, all of which he is extremely proud of and more than happy to show off. A total dad. He loves his wife and can sing her praises all day if you let him. As he commits himself to being a family man, he continues to pursue a career in law enforcement to protect our community. 

This theme of protection and connection is a value that is woven throughout Sergio’s life. You would never guess the story that lays just underneath the surface.

After witnessing a terrifying event as a teenager, Sergio’s father told him that he has two options: 1) Sit down and be quiet, or 2) Go out and do something. Months later, at 16 years old, Sergio enlisted in the military. At 17 he became a green beret. Certified in multiple skill sets he was selected to join the Joint Special Forces of NATO; traveling all over the world providing medical care, protecting civilians, and stopping the bad guys. A real-life hero. There are enough mission hours to write a series of novels. Yet what does he consider the most important step in his life? Becoming a U.S. Citizen.

Comparing the way he talks about his military service and the way he talks about his immigration process; you would think that training as a green beret was a walk in the park. He told me that he tells anyone going through this process that they need a good lawyer; someone who knows the process and will tell you exactly what you need to hear will be critical in your process. 

Though he felt a lot of accomplishment – he also recognizes that it was a signifier of a major change in his life. It was going to take a lot of work and documents and forms. But when it finally happened it was a triumph. It was seemingly a culmination of every step he had taken, and every difficulty made worth it.

The immigration process wasn’t just another administrative step he had to go through. To Sergio, this was the one of the most important missions in his life. Becoming a United States Citizen brought stability and a better life for his family. It gave him the opportunity to continue to serve and protect his community through local law enforcement. Additionally, if not more striking, is that Sergio took that final step of citizenship for his fallen service members. Over the phone, Sergio took a long pause as he found the words to describe this. He remembers all the missions he took with his brothers in arms, the faces of the men that they lost protecting the innocent. Sergio knows that they would be proud  to know that their sacrifice still matters, because he can be a citizen, and continue that work of justice and protection.

Sergio is imbued with a strong sense of justice. Where there is someone who needs help, there is not time to determine if it is awkward or if it seems impossible. There is someone who needs help, there is only one right answer – do something. And no mission is too small. Helping someone who fell. Giving directions. Coming in for an interview to help with a project. Front lines in a foreign country and front lines in the community hold equal weight to Sergio. 

I was born in 1998; I barely remember 9/11. But I have grown up in a period of American history where there is always something going on. Wars in far off countries. Civil unrest. Contentious elections and growing hostilities. The chaos has become the background track of my American childhood – and sometimes I am not sure what one is supposed to do. But when I talk to Sergio, about the simple things like family and neighbors, I think that maybe we don’t all need to be special forces. Not everyone needs to be in law enforcement or jump out of planes. 

Maybe what we need is just the courage to step out and be a neighbor. Instead of posting online and locking our doors we connect with the real people in our community. Do one small right thing every day. Play with our kids, listen to our friend, help a stranger. And maybe, however slowly, it will begin to change things. One life at a time.