Sign up for The Brief , The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

HOUSTON — At a Pentecostal church in a shopping center just north of the city, the pastor called the children toward the pulpit for a Mother’s Day blessing. Brothers Isaac, 12, and Jeremiah Avila, 10, stepped forward holding cards they made for their mother, Margarita.

Their smiles vanished as the mothers approached to hug and kiss their children — no one came for them.

Seeing their faces, the oldest sister, Lisbet Avila, swept in to escort the boys back to their seats. Next to them, their father, José Avila, 54, kneeled as if to pray, but instead cried into his hands. Isaac pulled his button-down shirt over his face, hiding his red, tear-stained eyes.

Jeremiah

See Full Page