An Oklahoma family is looking forward to a sweet reunion with their 5-year-old daughter.
John and Vanesa Galvan set out to take a family vacation. They had no idea they would end up being separated from their little girl, Samantha. On New Year's Eve, John and Samantha flew to Colombia to visit family, People reports.
The plan was for John to leave Samantha for a visit with her grandparents for a few months. She would learn about her culture and enjoy some special time with loved ones while he was there. John and Vanesa planned to return for her around Easter.
That all changed in March when COVID-19 travel restrictions were put in place. The couple thought their trip might be pushed back days or weeks. They never imagined that they wouldn't get to see their daughter for almost a year.
This weekend will mark a glorious moment for the family, as John is finally able to head to Colombia and bring their little girl home.
An Oklahoma family is anxiously awaiting a reunion. John and Vanesa are parents to a beautiful 5-year-old girl, Samantha. They haven't seen their precious little one in 10 months because of the chaos caused by COVID-19.
On New Year's Eve, John traveled to Colombia with Samantha. The couple planned for the little girl to spend a few months learning about her culture with her grandparents. John and Samantha planned to return in April for Samantha.
"We said OK. This is pre-kindergarten," John told NBC DFW. "The perfect time. She'll get the culture, and pick up more Spanish."
"That got pushed back because of COVID," John told KFOR.
At the time, the couple figured it would be a matter of days or weeks until they could go pick her up. Now, it's been 10 months since they've seen Samantha.
"It's been a nightmare," John said of the separation.
The couple has been keeping up with their little girl by video chat. Still, they are pained by missing out on her 5th birthday and other important milestones.
"Her little tooth is almost falling so she was all excited and telling us," Vanesa said.
Samantha is enjoying her time in Colombia. She's gotten to embrace her culture and the language, as her parents hoped for.
"She barely speaks English anymore!" John said.
Her parents are happy that she's enjoying herself, but they're feeling her absence deeply.
"She would not sleep in her bed and she would come and knock on our door and lay a blanket down next to our bed — and she'd just want to sleep near us," John said. "That's been heartbreaking for me not having her there"
John and Vanesa have tried many different avenues of getting Samantha home. Ultimately, they were told the only option would be to have Samantha board a humanitarian flight alone. As you can imagine, neither parent was comfortable with that.
"If you were an athlete or something like that and you needed to go somewhere, the government would bend over backwards," John said. "I feel like a 5-year-old little US Citizen was forgotten about."
Thankfully for the family, the travel restrictions are finally easing up.
This weekend will be an exciting one for the family. John will finally travel to Colombia and bring their little girl home.
"We just want to get her back in our arms," he said.
There's a big welcome awaiting her. Her parents are surprising her with a new playhouse. The neighborhood will celebrate her return with a drive-by welcome back parade.
