'12 Days': Rio Grande City family struggles to care for son

LAS LOMAS — Canned laughter and empty dialogue blares from the television as the fan quietly hums in the corner.

A single compact fluorescent bulb lights the living room as Jose Gilberto Islas Jr. quietly hones in on the TV screen. He’s watching one of his favorite shows — Hannah Montana.

The squeal of chrome-rimmed tires and blaring tejano music periodically drowns the noise as pickup trucks kick up dust in this hardscrabble colonia of 2,600 on the outskirts of Rio Grande City.

Jose Jr. fiddles a white leather shoelace in his hands as his white teddy bear sits in his lap. A blue cast protrudes from the left leg of Jose’s aqua Sponge Bob Square Pants pajama pants.

Suddenly, his face winces as he lets out a deep moan, pointing at the screen.

Jose Jr.’s mother, Maria, gently puts her arm around her boy’s back, trying to calm the child.

He moans again and points at the screen.

“He wants to watch the DVD, but the machine is broken,” Maria explains in Spanish.

Movies typically calm Jose Jr. — Carritos, or Cars, is his favorite — but the tired player no longer reads discs.

Jose Jr.’s big sister, Yessica, gets up and turns off the TV. Her little brother calms down.

Less than a minute passes before Jose moans again. He points at the TV.

Yessica gets up and turns it back on.

This cycle repeats more than a dozen times in less than two hours.

But the minor inconvenience is nothing for the Islas family and little Jose, the 15-year-old middle child whose small wiry frame weighs far less than 100 pounds, light enough for his mother to carry him around the house.

The Islas family is the ninth family featured in this year’s “12 Days of Christmas.” The series, sponsored by the United Way and The Monitor, highlights local families in need and asks Rio Grande Valley residents to help make their holidays a little brighter.

Jose Jr. has mental retardation and a thyroid deficiency that will require medication for the rest of his life. He was born with deformed feet, which makes walking difficult for him.

Recent surgery provided by the Texas Children with Special Health Needs Services program gave Jose Jr. the blue cast on his left leg. Doctors plan on repairing his other foot when the first cast comes off.

Before the surgery, Jose Jr. would hobble about the trailer, discovering the confines of his home. Fearing injury, his parents would rarely let him venture outside.

The operations will hopefully allow Jose Jr. to walk more easier, rather than having to struggle with his natural, bow-shaped feet. For now, Maria has to carry him as the family works with the state to get him a properly fitted wheelchair.

Jose’s birth defects brought the Islas family across the river to Rio Grande City from Camargo seven years ago.

The schools in Mexico could not provide adequate care for Jose, who needs help with all aspects of his daily life — from eating and speaking basic words to using the bathroom and drinking water.

Jose gets physical, occupational and speech therapy through programs at the Rio Grande City school district — help Maria calls a blessing.

“Before, he didn’t know how to say he was hungry,” she says as she fixes Jose’s favorite sandwich — two slices of wheat bread smeared with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. (He won’t eat it if he sees she uses the store brand, Maria says.)

Maria grew up Catholic, but turned to the Baptist church as she looked for support and answers after Jose Jr. was born.

Meanwhile, her husband, Jose Sr., turned to alcohol and took out his frustrations on Maria as he struggled to cope with their son’s challenges. He would use drugs and made money smuggling loads across the border — until he nearly lost his life.

“I ran into the river and I felt the bullets fly by my head,” Jose Sr. said.

So Jose Jr. followed his wife to the church to save his family.

“God changed my life completely,” he said in Spanish. “It changed my mentality to a different form.”

Jose Sr. found a job as a mechanic at a maquiladora and he earned enough for the family to survive. His fellow factory workers raised $400 to take Jose Jr. to the doctor, who diagnosed the child’s disabilities.

Still, Jose Sr. said he knew his son needed medical help the family could not afford.

The family picked up their roots and crossed in 2001.

Jose Sr.’s first job was at a taqueria, where he earned about $120 per week. He eventually found work with contractors on construction jobs. There, he learned all aspects of building houses — from framing walls to finishing trim.

Maria sold clothes that don’t fit her family donated by the church at a nearby pulga — a task she still does for extra money.

The Islas family first lived in a small trailer camper when they arrived in Las Lomas seven years ago. They lived in several places before the family eventually saved up enough cash to buy a run-down two bedroom trailer that the family lives in on rented land.

A wooden entertainment center adorned with family photos stands in the living room and finished cabinets hang in the kitchen. Varnished trim lines rehabilitated walls and floors.

Jose Sr. has pieced together materials left over from job sites to fix the inside of the trailer.

Fixing the home has slowed as as construction jobs have dried up. Sometimes, Jose Sr. goes days without work. Days where contractors can pay him for work are a blessing, he says.

Take a step down the hallway, however, and the cool December draft wafts through cracks in the plywood and weathered vinyl-covered floorboards. Jose continues to work on replacing the walls as he continues to collect scraps.

The family sleeps together on the living room floor beside a space heater on cold nights this winter, as they did last week. The family does the same during the summer heat — their church donated a window air conditioner that provides some relief.

Crossing to the U.S. has been a struggle for the Maria and her husband, Jose. Most of their family and friends remain in Mexico — most whom they haven’t seen in years.

But Maria says she pushes on beside her husband to give their kids a chance at making a better life — especially for Jose.

“We are fighting, but we are here for our son,” she said.

Yessica, 17, is a junior at Rio Grande City High School. She loves math and wants to go to college after graduation to study business administration. She wants to be an accountant.

When Jose Sr. held steady construction work, the family saved enough to put braces on Yessica’s teeth. She says she has not been back to the dentist in at least eight months.

Alan, 12, faces his own personal struggle — he’s dyslexic — but gets extra help at school. The quietest one of the family, he plays on the basketball team and said he loves the Dallas Cowboys.

Knowing his youngest son needs help, too, is tough for Alan’s parents, who admit the lot of their time goes to Jose Jr.

“All my attention goes to him,” Jose Sr. said. “The other does not get much attention.”

With that in mind, the Islas said they do not know what they will do after Jose Jr. moves on from the help he gets at school. The family has not had the chance to look that far ahead.

The church has become a source of strength for the family in their daily lives.

“I like to preach,” Jose Sr. said. “I like to help people with their marriages, with their problems. I like to help kids with drugs — they are steps down. They are not going to take you up.”

Paying all the monthly bills remains a stretch for the Islas family — as it is for many families in today’s recession. Jose Sr. and Maria admit Christmas will be an afterthought as they struggle to survive.

When asked what they want for Christmas, each family member sidesteps the question. They say they do not want to ask for handouts.

“We are living here as passengers,” Jose Sr. said. “We don’t want sympathy from the community. We have confidence in God that he will help us. We live for him.”

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Jared Taylor covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4439.

The United Way is accepting donations — including, but not limited to, clothing, food, furniture, toys and money — for the families of this series. To donate, call (956) 279-9047, (956) 279-9048 or (956) 279-9049 or mail to United Way, P.O. Box 187, McAllen Tx. 78505. You can also make an online donation on the United Way of South Texas website at www.unitedwayofsotx.org. The United Way of South Texas is located at 1200 E. Hackberry, Suite F in McAllen. The Monitor is not accepting donations.