blog 4

Here is another story by my husband, Gene, from his time in the desert leaving water for migrants: Hope you like it!!! Sue

Nos Vamos
South of Tucson and the small town of Amado and about 15 miles west of I 19, five of us arrived at a natural water tank on a summer patrol. We unloaded our packs and one-gallon plastic water jugs. We noticed an empty truck with a trailer for an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) behind it.
Five minutes later we spotted two men hiking down a trail toward us. Then we saw two other men coming down a parallel trail also directly toward us. We glanced back and forth between the two groups realizing that the second group's trail was on a lower elevation, and they couldn't see one another. To make it more interesting, the higher pair looked like migrants, while the lower pair wore the green uniforms of Border Patrol. We felt helpless as the short time passed and the groups came together where the two trails met. Few words were spoken as the agents placed the migrants under arrest. Only then did these four acknowledge our presence, although they must have noticed us peripherally.
Soon, we were sitting in a circle as people spoke quietly to one another. We offered everyone water and snack food. The agents must have felt all was secure for they did not bind the wrists and ankles of the migrants. It was like a picnic among friends.
One of the migrants said a calm voice, Nos vamos (Let’s go!!). The two migrants sprung from their seats and hit the ground running! One ran down the left fork of a trail, while his partner ran down the right fork. They were hell bent for leather as they flew the 100 feet down a steep incline to the flatter level below! Close behind, the two agents also ran, one just behind the migrant on the left. The other agent ran to his ATV, started the engine and gunned it down a third path, evidently to travel ahead and cut off the second migrant further down the trail.
After we recovered from our shock, we piled into our truck and moved off to another trail where we placed several gallons of water at a drop site. When we returned to where we had last seen the agents and migrants, we found: no people, no vehicles, nothing.
God bless us all!