It was Christmas time when sisters Nandy Gordillo Caceres and Raisa Gordillo Caceres awaited their father, Jorge Antonio Gordillo Morales, to return home with a freshly cut Christmas tree. They were 4 and 3 years old at the time, said Nandy Caceres, a freshman from Guatemala majoring in TESOL and exercise and sports science. “I never saw him again,” she said.
Her last memory of her father was asking him if she could go get the tree with him, to which he responded, “No.” She said her father was on his way to cut down a Christmas tree for the family when he was kidnapped and murdered.
This all happened 15 days before Christmas and five days before their brother, Hafid’s, birthday, Nandy Caceres added. Her father was 28 years old at the time.
A family that stays together
Nandy Caceres said, “My father used to always say, ‘Familia unida jamas sera vencida,’ which translates to, ‘a family that stays together will never be defeated.’”
“The year my father was killed was the year we were supposed to get sealed in the temple.” She said she remembers being in the temple and her mother told her their father was there with them.
Since being sealed to her family, Nandy Caceres said, she knows families can be eternal. “That is my favorite part of the gospel.”
The Christmas tender mercy
Raisa Caceres, a freshman from Guatemala majoring in hospitality and tourism management, said she doesn’t have many memories of her dad, but she does know him through photos. Nandy Caceres said after the murder, their mother, Angelica Maria Caceres Sosa de Gordillo, took the family and fled to her brother’s house in another part of Guatemala.
Raisa Caceres said they were then advised to go to the Unit-ed States, so they went to Rhode Island first, then California to seek refugee status. Their mother did this to protect her family, she added. She said when they went to California, the apartment they moved into was completely prepared for them to move in by donations from the local ward.
Nandy Caceres said during their time in California, she and her sister were 9 and 8 years old. Their family struggled, they were in a new country with no family, she explained. At Christmastime, they expected a small Christmas, said Nandy Caceres. This was difficult because in Guatemalan culture, Christmas is a huge celebration with family, making it difficult for them to be alone in California without their father.
Raisa Caceres said to their surprise, they came home to a lot of food, including two turkeys, many presents, the first gingerbread house they had ever seen and a beautiful, decorated, natural Christmas tree “touching the ceiling,” all given to them by Church members.
Of the experience, Nandy Caceres said, “God takes care of his widows.” For their family, it was a tender mercy because their father used to always bring home real Christmas trees, not the fake ones.
Raisa Caceres said, “I really wanted to open those presents, but my mom asked everyone to kneel and say a prayer to thank God for everything.”
Nandy Caceres said although their mother often says she did not give her kids a lot of material things, she did give them the most precious thing, which is the gospel. Raisa Caceres agreed, “The gospel is the best thing she gave [our family].”
She continued, “My mom’s example of faith was always there.” She said their mom made sure their family read in the Book of Mormon in the mornings and the Bible in the afternoons. After about a year in the United States, she said, their mom decided to move back to Guatemala. “My mom’s main priori-ty was protecting our family.”
A double acceptance to BYUH
Nandy Caceres said she and her sister are very grateful to now be studying at BYU–Hawaii, and they owe this blessing to their mother paying tithing while they were growing up. “When she had to decide to buy food for us or pay her tithing, she would pay her tithing. We would then see angel people bringing food to us,” she said.
Raisa Caceres said because BYUH’s IWORK program focuses on helping the Pacific Island and Asia populations, there are limited spots available for students outside that geographic area. When applying, Raisa Caceres said, she and her sister prayed the other sister would get the spot, but then both of them were accepted.
Nandy Caceres said, “It has been a healing process and a huge blessing knowing God cares. He is taking care of [my family] like a father takes care of his children.” She emphasized she believes she and her sister “are here to help him [God] build his kingdom because he has given so much to [them].”