Leander and Jesús first came to the United States in 2016 as asylum seekers with their family. They have continued to think about Venezuela and wonder how they can help the country that they love so much. Then, it occurred to them: a book to raise funds to feed other children.

The IRC opened its locally-funded office in Miami in 1960 in response to the Cuban Revolution and, over the decades, has served over 25,000 refugees, asylees, survivors of human trafficking and other vulnerable populations in South Florida. Due to nationally reduced refugee admissions, the IRC ended its refugee resettlement program in Miami in 2018. Although its resettlement program concluded in 2018, the IRC in Miami continues to serve the community by providing holistic, trauma-informed services to survivors of human trafficking and unaccompanied children and their families.