Widowed mom of 3 kids faces deportation, fears for family's safety in Jamaica

A widowed mother ofthree, facing deportation, says Immigration, Refugees andCitizenship Canada failed her family,who fear theirlives will be in jeopardy if they are sent back to Jamaica next month.

"I'm at a loss," said Natasha Gordon-Jones, who has spent the last fiveyears in St. Catharines, Ont.trying to keep herfamily safe after her husband's brutal murder.

"I have exhausted my efforts. I have paid over $25,000 to lawyers.I've got receipts to show."

The family of four is scheduled to be deportedon Feb. 24 byCanada Border Service Agency, to the countrythey've been trying to escape.

"It'snot because of poverty why I'm here. It's circumstance," Gordon-Jones told CBC News.

The Gordon-Jones family kept its deportation fighta secret, until one of her sons, 17-year-oldJoshua-Lee Jones revealedthisunknown past and his family's struggle to his Grade 12 English class at Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School two weeks ago.

Now students and teachers are fighting for the family and supporting them. They'velaunched a campaign to help themobtain refugee status.

'What murder is like in Jamaica'

Gordon-Jones and her husband, Everton Jones owned a scrap metal business in Spanish Town, Jamaica before he was murdered while heading to work, on July 29, 2011, she says for refusing to pay extortion money to a gang.

"I thought that was where it would have ended," she said. "Little did I know, that was the beginning."

It didn't stop there, despite police involvement.

'Just imagine what we've gone through for fiveyears and out of nowhere people start being nice and you're like 'whoa, this has been Canada all this time?'"- Jason-Lee Jones

After Everton's death, Gordon-Jones claims she "started getting threats," including two unidentified men who showed up at then12-year-oldJason-Lee's school, and a phone call telling her if she didn't pay protection money her 18-year-old daughter, Sasha would be raped.

"They're going to make an example of the family. They don't stop," she stated.

"Do you know what murder is like in Jamaica? They leave nothing, these are heirs of me and heirs of my husband. [We're] dead."

When the threats didn't stop, Gordon-Jones got on the next flight to Toronto with her three children,Sasha, 18, Jason-Lee, 12, and Michael, 8 to stay with her sisterin Mississauga, Ont as tourists.

Fighting 2nd deportation order, lawyer says

She's been fighting ever since appealing for refugee status tokeep her familyalive, but she's running out of time and resources.

According to her immigration lawyer, Osborne Barnwell, this isn't the first time the family faced deportation.

In early 2014,the family'srefugee statusapplication was dismissed because a previous lawyer didn't include relevant facts to her case,Barnwelltold CBC News.

He says this launcheda long, drawn legal battle with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada andCanadian Border Service Agency.

I'm at aloss.Ihave exhausted my efforts. I have paidover $25,000 to lawyers.- Natasha Gordon-Jones

One day before they were scheduled to be deported Gordon-Jones applied for a judicial review of their case, which granted them an additional two years, but it wasn't enough. It wasultimately rejected in November 2016.

Shortly after, Barnwell filedafederal court petition seeking apre-removalrisk assessment application,which evaluates the risk of persecution for those being removed from Canada.

Ultimately this avenue was denied too because, according to Barnwell,Canada Border Service Agency didn't believethe letter a Jamaican police officer supplied supporting the family's claims that they would be in danger if they moved back to the country was legitimate.

CBC News contactedImmigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada about the case, but didn't receive a response to our questions.

On Feb. 24, the family will be deported.

'They're everything,they're my life'

Jason-Lee says he is surprised and grateful for the reaction after he decided to reveal his and his family's plight to his teacher and classmates at Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School two weeks ago.

Now, the school's students, teachers and alumni are advocating on their behalf.

"Just imagine what we've gone through for fiveyears and out of nowhere people start being nice and you're like 'whoa, this has been Canada all this time?'" Jason-Lee said. "It surprised me actually."

His grade 12 English teacher, Catherine Chin Yet is spearheading thesupport.

"We've had alumni students from Holy Cross contact me who've heard the story and writing letters to the Minister of Immigration. Its been overwhelming," Chin Yet said.

To Jason-Lee,his class isnot just supportive,"they're everything, they're my life," he adds.

They're going to make an example of the family. They don't stop.- Natasha Gordon-Jones

"They make sure I have food. They make sure I'm stable in my mind. They just think of it and they're doing it... They're doing everything that is humanly possible."

The 17-year-old wants to be an aeronautical engineer andplans to pursue a post-secondary education. He was recently accepted into Brock University and Carleton University's engineering programs.

This is whatGordon-Jones says hurts her the most about her family's situationis they're "going to kill [her] son's dream."

"The kids are happy. This is life, this is freedom," she said."Why are you taking away my kids' lives?"