Late at night, just before the restaurant lights go out, I wait for my daughter in my car. Through the window, I see her hauling heavy trash bags and mopping the empty floors. While her peers are sitting in university lecture halls, my daughter finally received her high school diploma just a few weeks before her 22nd birthday. Now, she works late every night to save for the university tuition she has dreamed of for so long.
Watching her from behind breaks my heart. As a father who can only offer her debt and poverty, the words "I'm sorry" feel too heavy to speak; I can only sit in silence and hold back my tears.
Our journey has been anything but easy.
Born in Korea and raised in New Zealand since the age of seven, my daughter was in her second year of high school when the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly hit. I lost my job, and our family was forced to leave New Zealand as if we were being chased out. With no home, no job, and no family to support us back in Korea, we moved to Toronto, Canada, clinging to our last bit of hope.
However, life in Canada has been a series of continuous trials. Due to administrative errors between the school and the school board, along with delays in the immigration office's visa processing, my daughter had to spend more than two years as a "visitor"—unable to attend school or work legally. While her friends graduated and moved forward, she was trapped in a frozen time.
Despite everything, she never gave up. She studied for high school equivalency exams on her own and finally obtained her diploma recently, just weeks before turning 22.
Now, our family faces one last major hurdle:
The Crisis of Visa Expiration: Her current visa expires at the end of August this year. Now that she is 22, she can no longer be included as a "dependent child" in our permanent residency application. To stay with her family in Canada and avoid being separated, she must enroll in school and obtain a study permit.
Financial Hardship: Although she works day and night at the restaurant to save money, it is realistically impossible for her to save enough for the expensive international student tuition by August.
How your warm support will be used:
All funds raised will be used directly for the following purposes: ✅ My daughter’s first-year university tuition ✅ Student visa application fees ✅ Essential textbooks and learning materials ✅ Basic school supplies and necessary devices for her studies
With this support:
She can immediately enroll in university and secure her student visa.
she can remain in Canada with her family.
She can finally receive the education she was deprived of for several years.
She can build the future she has worked so hard for.
Even though she currently spends her exhausting days mopping restaurant floors, my daughter has not given up on her dream of returning to her studies and becoming someone who contributes to society. Please help this child reclaim the four years she lost to the pandemic and administrative gaps.
I pray for the day when she can finally focus on her studies.
Thank you so much for reading our story.