LIVERMORE — Rosa Lopez cries “every day, all day,” since traveling to Mexico City to be with her husband, Miguel, after his deportation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials on June 7.“This has all been so difficult, Rosa told The Independent in a June 16 telephone interview. “Right now, we are looking for a place for Miguel to live, so I can go home. When we first came here, we stayed with his dad here in Mexico City for one night, but it is a bad place and his house has been shot at, and we don’t feel safe.”When Miguel Lopez, a 27-year Livermore resident, was deported, ICE took his identification and passport, and he was left with literally nothing but the clothes on his back. The journey, he said, has been difficult.“I’m OK. We’re OK, doing our best,” he said by phone. “I am stressed out, of course. This is not what I thought would happen, but we are trying to stay positive and hopeful.”Miguel, who was detained by ICE during a routine May 27 immigration appointment in San Francisco, was deported to Mexico just before federal authorities issued a stay for him to remain in the U.S.“We had filed a motion for an emergency stay with the U.S. District court, but the stay was not adjudicated until Monday (June 9), and they took him on Saturday,” said Saad Ahmad, Miguel’s attorney. “Now the order is a moot point. It was a shocker for us.”Miguel, 46, a married father of three and grandfather, has been on a years-long path to citizenship, beginning in 2007, when he applied with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to change his status from an alien to a permanent resident. But his request was denied because it was determined that Miguel, as a young 18-year-old at the border, had told border police that he was a citizen when he was not.In 2012, Miguel was granted an application for a green card, but the government appealed that decision, saying that because he had lied, he was not eligible for a green card. However, according to Ahmad, while the appeal was pending, Miguel was granted a temporary green card, which was later revoked.Since that time, Miguel has worked to secure legal residency, which involves making appearances at the immigration office several times a year. It was at one of these office visits in May that Miguel was detained and taken to a detention facility in McFarland, California, about 250 miles from the Bay Area.Miguel, who had worked at Wente Vineyards as a welder, has lived in Livermore for 27 years. When he married Rosa in 2001, she filed paperwork for Miguel to obtain permanent residency, a first step toward citizenship. Since then, Rosa said, he has been a law-abiding citizen who pays his taxes and is the primary financial support for his family, each member of which is a U.S. resident. She said he has held his position at Wente for nine years.Telephone calls to Wente Vineyards were not returned.Upon arrival home, Rosa hopes to work out Miguel’s health insurance and job situation at Wente. She said that she reached out to Wente to inquire if Miguel could retain his benefits and use his paid-time-off hours to help cover expenses. The only response she received was a written notice stating that Miguel must return to work by June 25.“I haven’t spoken to anyone there (Wente), but I hope to soon,” Rosa said.In response to the Lopezes’ situation, the community has stepped up in support. A rally was held last month in Livermorium Plaza decrying his treatment by ICE and calling for his release from the detention center. At the “No Kings” protest in Dublin on June 14, community members were out in force to show their support. A GoFundMe account set up by Laura Bertoli-Brown, a Granada High School instructor who taught two of the Lopez’s sons, has raised nearly $45,000.“We are so grateful to everyone,” Rosa said. “But, yes, it is very, very hard. We have tried everything, and we have done everything for a better future for our family, and now this. We try to stay hopeful.”Ahmed stated he would continue to fight for Miguel’s return, despite the challenging circumstances.“The only way he returns is if we win the case in the district court, and it will take several months to decide that,” Ahmed said. “People have contacted congressmen in the area for assistance, but so far, no luck. But we will keep fighting. We won’t give up.”To donate to the GoFundMe account, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/bring-miguel-back-to-his-loved-ones.