UNDOCUMENTED

by Harold Fernandez

In the darkness of the early hours of October 27, 1978, my brother and I huddled in the bow of a small motorboat fighting against the ravages of the Atlantic Ocean. The darkness, the solitude of the night, and the ferocious movements of the boat were too much for us to handle. We all thought that we would die. I prayed and I begged the lord for another day so that I could see my parents. Once a safe and humble community, Barrio Antioquia-a town in Medellin, Colombia-was now plagued by unemployment and overrun by gangs, drug mules, and hired assassins. Realizing Medellin held no future for their family, Harold Fernandez's parents travelled illegally to New York to work in sweatshops, leaving their sons behind temporarily. Years later, Harold and his brother risked their lives for the opportunity to join their parents in America. Harold's epic journey brought him from the turbulent violence and drug wars of Medellin to the charm and beauty of the mythic classrooms, libraries, and laboratories of Princeton University and Harvard Medical School. On his way to fulfilling his childhood dream of helping others, Harold endured the struggles of living in the margins as an undocumented immigrant. This is a story of inexhaustible love, unfailing determination, and human compassion. It shows that in America all dreams are possible. Recently, Harold's story was published in the New York Daily News, 'Smuggled as a Child from Colombia, Now He's a Harvard Grad and a Doctor, ' and the New York Times, 'An Undocumented Princetonian.'

296 pages, Perfect Paperback

First published May 8, 2012

About the author

Harold Fernandez is Professor of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at the Hofstra- Northwell Health School of medicine. He is also Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at Southside Hospital, and the Northwell Health System Director of Surgical Heart Failure. For the last several years, he has been selected by Castle-Connolly as one of the top thoracic surgeons in New York. More recently, he has developed a web-based program, "Show del Doctor Fernandez: Su Salud en Espanol", to inform the Hispanic community about a wide variety of health-related topics.

Dr. Fernandez has received national publicity for his story as an undocumented immigrant who has made his childhood dream of helping others a reality. He came to the United States at age of 13 from Medellin, Colombia in an epic journey that included risking his life in a small boat through the perilous waters of the Bermuda Triangle to reach the coast of Miami, and then join his parents in New York. While living in America as an undocumented immigrant, he received a degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton University, where he was also awarded the Moses Taylor Pyne Honor Prize (the highest general distinction at Princeton), Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude. Following his Princeton years, he was accepted into the highly selective Harvard Medical School--MIT program in health sciences and technology. After graduation from Harvard, he underwent training in general surgery and cardiothoracic surgery at the New York University (NYU) Medical Center and Bellevue Hospital.

Recently, he has published a memoir entitled "Undocumented: My Journey to Princeton and Harvard and Life as a Heart Surgeon," and has been featured in national media stories, including the New York Times. Meanwhile, he has not forgotten his roots. Dr. Fernandez participates in numerous volunteer activities to improve the health of people in his community, and promote the rights of undocumented immigrants in America. Over the last ten years, Dr. Fernandez has been active in reaching out to immigrant youth to promote the importance of staying in school, and the message that with faith, hard work, passion for your dream and sacrifice everything is possible.

Dr. Fernandez is married to Sandra Yasmin Fernandez, who grew up in the same neighborhood of Barrio Antioquia, in Medellín, where Dr. Fernandez was raised. They met during one of his visits to his grandmothers. The Fernandez's have two children: Jasmine (eighteen) and Brandon (eleven).

Reviews

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a personal view of being undocumented in the United States. It makes few excuses, it pleads to excuse based on accomplishments, and points out difficulties with the system.