RichieW

My wife and I have seen Sveta 3 times since she entered the shelter. I don't know where the shelter is, and I don't want to know, but I know it's close by so we see her fairly frequently lately. She's been getting around town using the bus, we often pick her up at bus stops. It's part of the rules that even close friends don't know where the shelter is. Last week she came over and we drank some wine and had some good Oggi's pizza. She seems so much better!! For the first time since I've known her I saw her smiling a lot. Absent were the dark circles below her eyes and the periodic despondent gaze evident in people that are depressed. Her son seems so much more energetic too and smiley. I left posting back post in this thread to her because I had some suspicion her husband might be reading this. I have confidence now she's getting the legal assistance she needs. She appears to be very logical about this whole thing now too, no longer engaging in the "he said this, he said that."

Things are improving.

The last time I saw her she was EXTREMELY thin, almost emaciated. I have tried repeatedly to get in touch of her today, but have had no success. Her husband has unfriended me on Facebook.

I do not feel she was suicidal, but I am afraid for her. I feel she may be on the run with Tyler or something. She loves him so much. I've rarely seen a woman dote on her child so much. I will keep trying to find her.

Wednesday this week she got a new phone, but has been more or less out of contact.

Her husband has posted the following items on facebook:

"Divorce is never fun or easy, but when a chaplain says you need one, it can really slap your ego."

Then yesterday:

"Got full custody yesterday, now I just got to find Tyler. I am at peace."

My wife and I are unable to get a hold of Sveta, we cannot get through on her new phone. We don't know what her status is.

We tried to help her and counseled her strongly to get a lawyer.

That is the current status, we can only hope and pray things are going OK for her, but it appears her "husband" has the upper hand here.

My wife and I can't make sense of the situation, it's all "he said she said." With that though, we don't want bad things to happen to her or for her to be denied access to her son.

Svet, what Harpa is saying is that you need to file a VAWA petition. Based on what I and my wife have seen personally about your situation it certainly seems as though you would have a successful petition. I think you need to step back, relax, go through the VAWA petition forms and seek legal assistance. As Harpa mentioned, your "legal record" is a problem, but you will be able to explain yourself during the petition process.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=b85c3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=b85c3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

Hi Harpa.

My wife tried to get her accepted into a Victims of Violence shelter. She needs a restraining order against her husband to get accepted. She was seeking a protection order against her husband, and possibly a place to stay. She came to stay with us after they explained to her there they couldn't help her at all, specifically due to her "legal issues." They advised her that she could not talk to her husband and to stay away from him.

She came to our home and when the husband inquired about where she and his son were, he talked to me on my wifes phone. Since Sveta had been instructed by the shelter to have no contact with her husband, so she didn't wish to speak with him on the phone.

We are trying to help, but this is completely uncharted territory for us.

Sveta Botanik

Hello everyone.

I have not been active on this site for years, but it is how I met the OP a few years back. In effort of full disclosure, I only logged in because I knew the OP had been on this site and was posting. I found this thread through searching. I met her husband on this site over 2 year ago when he contacted me here to help file K1 documentation and had some questions about the interview in Moscow. Since then our family has relocated to California (we moved here last October) and we met OP and her family in person. My wife Marina is a good friend of hers, we've had OP, her son, and husband over at our home numerous times.

I would like to offer my $0.02 for whatever it's worth. You can question my authenticity, but I can and will provide supporting evidence in private message if you so require it.

1. What she is telling is is truthful from my vantage point. Her husband appears at times to be very responsible, but it's a front for something else. I get the feeling he will say or do whatever to appear as everything is on the level, but then behind closed doors is a different animal.

2. He has stated to her that her documentation didn't need to be processed. He has given her false information that if she just waited a few years she'd automatically get permanent residency status (and be able to work etc) because of his being a member of the military. His excuse for not filign sooner and doing things the proper way was that he could avoid the fees associated with filing, and it would be automatic being a military member anyway.

3. Her husband is on multiple dating sites. My wife and I found his profile on OKCupid. He states he is a single father looking for "fun."

4. His closest friends are also the people he works with at the public affairs office. He has access to legal council, she does not. He is currently working with an LN2 officer. She has not been able to secure legal council as she does not have the funds available to do so. Earlier this week we attempted to get her access to free council, including a Catholic Center here that offers legal advice to abused women, but she was turned away.

5. On Monday of this week we sent to a VAWA center and was declined assistance because of her "legal record." He has multiple times called the police on her and had them bring her in for abusing him physically. This is patently absurd. On 1 occasion the police were called on her when she wasn't even at home. The OP is 5'9" tall and can't weigh more than 110lbs wet. She actually is so thin, my wife and I are worried about her health.

6. After she received no assistance from the VAWA on monday, she and her son spent time at our house. Her husband came home (after staying at his "friends" for the past week, leaving her with no money for food and only calling once) and noticed they were gone. He called my wife and asked if OP and her son were at our house. We informed him they were. I told him he could come over to see his son but that OP didn't want to see him and that she felt threatened by him. He said everything was fine and that he'd let it cool down for the night. The next morning he proceeded to get the sheriff involved and attempted to make it look like kidnapping. The Sheriff arrived at our home Tuesday morning and spoke with my wife. The OP was downtown trying to file for divorce. I spoke with the Sherrif at length as he called me later at my office, no charges were filed against the OP.

The fact is this man is and has been dating other women. He has repeatedly threatened to take her son away from her and deport her. He often leaves for many days at a time, leaving no food or money or means for them to get food. He has an explosive temper. He will often times show up, take the son, and use the son to go on a date with another woman (baseball game last weekend).

My wife and I have attempted to help, but quite frankly are at a loss on what to do. She's out of status in her immigration, we can't seem to get her legal representation, she has a "criminal record" (but with no charges), VAWA will not help her. We've offered OP sanctuary at our home and she's taken up on that from time to time, but she does not want to be away from her son. She's very afraid of losing the ability to see him every day.

One other thing, her English is quite good, with a surprising vocabulary. She has a very thick accent which makes her speech harder to understand than my wife's English, even though they started learning around the same time. The OP spends many hours per day reading English on her computer, my wife does not.

Just figured I'd clarify a few things. Any advice or assistance you can offer that can help better her situation is appreciated.

-Rich

My wife and I are in a similar situation.

My sweeties I-94 expires July 24, we were married June 25. Do we need to notify USCIS that we are now married or is that what the AOS effectively does? If we were to chill for a few months getting settled in our new home with our new marriage before we file the AOS, what harm is there in that? I just feel a bit strange because after getting married we didn't notify USCIS.. I don't want ther to become Illegal after the I-94 expiration.

So for my fiance's K1 interview we need to have documentation for her daughters eligibility for a K2? What exactly do we need? From what I understand we need a document that says she has full custody of her daughter from her ex-husband, and his parental rights are terminated. Is this correct? She has to release him from child support payments (which he doesn't bother to pay anyway). I am not sure exactly what I need to bring. When I look on the Moscow consulate website about K2 visa for her child, and info on the net, it seems fairly nebulous. I can't seem to figure it out. Will my fiance not get approved for her K1 if the documentation for her daughters K2 isn't finished? I am confused.

-Richard

I have a question about the interview thing.

As you guys know we got our NOA2 about a week ago. My sweetie has a young daughter, whom I listed on the petition. I provided birth certificate copies and information about her daughter. The father of the daughter, my sweetie's ex-husband has been out of the picture for a number of years now since their divorce. He hasn't paid any of the child support he was supposed to. He has been completely absent from her daughters life. Marina and I are under the impression that when the interview comes, we are required to have a document from the ex-husband that allows her daughter to leave the country. The problem is, he's an unreliable drunk and is unlikely to get off his #### and do the document. He has stated he'd do it before, but then went back on it and ended up disappearing for a few months only to turn up 1000km away and drunk. What can we do? Do we even need this document? Please assist. I know this isn't really the place for it, but this forum is all I've ever really read much on this site and the only people I really consider much in the same boat as me. Everyday I'm reading this thread hoping all of you will get your NOA2's post-haste. Marina and I are not married yet, so she does not have my last name. We are doing K1 and I129F because we are not married yet.

Thanks,

-Rich

Awesome! Grats on the approvals!

So are you planning for the child to accompany you when you depart for the United States or will the child follow later? The child will be on a K2 visa. You will be needing your devorce papers to make sure the father is out of the picture.

Does the child have a passort? Is the child carrying the fathers last name or yours?

Marina and I would like her daughter Yulia to come with us to the USA. She has her fathers last name. She does not have a passport. What do I need to do for K2 visa? I was under the impression it was connected to her mothers K1, because I listed her in the K1 application as a dependant. I also provided birth certificate and a passport sized photo. I also put pictures of me and her daughter together. As far as I know, Russian children do not get passports until they are 14 years old.

-Richard

I have a question about the interview thing.

Marina and I got our NOA2 about a week ago. My sweetie has a young daughter, whom I listed on the petition. I provided birth certificate copies and information about her daughter. The father of the daughter, my sweetie's ex-husband has been out of the picture for a number of years now since their divorce. He hasn't paid any of the child support he was supposed to. He has been completely absent from her daughters life. Marina and I are under the impression that when the interview comes, we are required to have a document from the ex-husband that allows her daughter to leave the country. The problem is, he's an unreliable drunk and is unlikely to get off his #### and do the document. He has stated he'd do it before, but then went back on it and ended up disappearing for a few months only to turn up 1000km away and drunk. What can we do? Do we even need this document? Please assist.

Thanks,

-Rich

I have a question about the interview thing.

As you guys know we got our NOA2 about a week ago. My sweetie has a young daughter, whom I listed on the petition. I provided birth certificate copies and information about her daughter. The father of the daughter, my sweetie's ex-husband has been out of the picture for a number of years now since their divorce. He hasn't paid any of the child support he was supposed to. He has been completely absent from her daughters life. Marina and I are under the impression that when the interview comes, we are required to have a document from the ex-husband that allows her daughter to leave the country. The problem is, he's an unreliable drunk and is unlikely to get off his #### and do the document. He has stated he'd do it before, but then went back on it and ended up disappearing for a few months only to turn up 1000km away and drunk. What can we do? Do we even need this document? Please assist. I know this isn't really the place for it, but this forum is all I've ever really read much on this site and the only people I really consider much in the same boat as me. Everyday I'm reading this thread hoping all of you will get your NOA2's post-haste.

Thanks,

-Rich

Awesome! Grats on the approvals!

My sweetie is Russian, so this goes to the Russian consulate. How long after NOA2 is it typically for VISA, assuming interview goes well? I am starting to put some wedding plans in motion.

*** DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS E-MAIL ***

The last processing action taken on your case

Receipt Number: ***************

Application Type: I129F , PETITION FOR FIANCE(E)

Current Status: Approval notice sent.

!!!! YAY!!!

Am I the first October filer at VSC approved? I am so so happy!

Hey guys just wanted to let you know I got a touch on my status today! This is the first touch since the NOA1 on October 1. I'm gonna hug my sweetie soon, I'm gonna hug my sweetie soon. Yay this means they are reviewing my case.

:)

I like checking this one:

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/monthl...=2&sortby=2

It allows me to see how close October is to begin pouring in. Just a guestimate, several of us will begin seeing NOA2 by around Valentine's day.

I am not sure i understand why you believe we will see NOA2's by Valentines day. When I look at Igors list it looks like they are slowely progressing through August, maybe only 50% complete. This seems to be up 30% from 2 weeks ago. This leads me to believe it will be longer than 1 month before they get to October filers, they still need to complete September.

Am I looking at this all wrong? My NOA1 is dated October 1, wondering when I can expect NOA2.

My fiance's computer no longer works on video conference, it keeps overheating . Hurry up USCIS I want to see my sweetie soon!

-Richard

BTW I just checked your timeline, is your NOA1 date correct? Should it say October instead of January. Your estimated approval date is based on the date you received your NOA1 so if this is not correct your estimated approval date will be well off.

I just fixed this. Thanks for the info. I miss her

Yeah I know how you feel. I haven't seen Tom in 6 months, and the last month or so has been the worst, mainly due to Christmas and New Year. Luckily I'm seeing him in February but it can't come quick enough! We are all in the same boat together, but like it says in my siggy, a few months apart is worth it when you'll have forever together.

I talk to her every day on the phone and we do a videoconference every night, so we can see each other and chat. Sometimes I'll setup the laptop so we can chat while I am eating dinner, and vice versa for her. It makes it kind of like we are having a meal together. The time difference gets difficult, I find myself up at 4am sometimes so we can chat on her lunch break at work. Right now I'm going through the process on buying a house for us so it will be difficult to pay to travel there to see her soon. I just wish these people at USCIS would hurry up my application. I understand they get mountains of applications, and that the list for October filers I see on this website probably is only a small percentage of the total number they get. I just wish there was something I could do to speed up the process. My fiance and I are very much in love. Our waiting to be together is a small price to pay for the lifetime of happiness I am certain we will have together.

Warm regards and good luck,

-Richard

BTW I just checked your timeline, is your NOA1 date correct? Should it say October instead of January. Your estimated approval date is based on the date you received your NOA1 so if this is not correct your estimated approval date will be well off.

I just fixed this. Thanks for the info. I miss her

Hey guys.

I am also an October Filer. I sent mine in on the 26th of September 2008, my check was cashed on October 1, NOA1 came on October 3 in the mail. My Case status notes October 1 as the last day anything was "touched." It is now mid January and I am a bit concerned something is wrong. My I-129F/K1 hasn't been touched since that initial NOA. I sent this to the Vermont Service Center.

I miss my sweetie pie soooo mucchh. We talk nightly of course, but we really want to be together soon. Because of my work situation I can't make another trip over to Russia to see her soon, bossman won't give me time off. How much longer can I expect to wait for my sweetie to come here?

Thanks,

-Richard