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Arts & Culture

Port Of Entry Podcast: This Transborder Couple Has Stayed Connected Despite The Pandemic Pinch At The Border

Jesse Daner and Pamela Figueroa are pictured in this collage of photos taken from 2020 through 2021.
Jesse Daner and Pamela Figueroa are pictured in this collage of photos taken from 2020 through 2021.
In these “Border Voices” bonus episodes, we feature shorter stories spotlighting people who identify as transborder, fronterizo or simply have something to say about how the U.S.-Mexico border has changed their lives. Today, meet Jesse Daner and Pamela Figueroa, a cross-border couple who met through their love of learning languages. Episode art by Dani Cortez. Follow “Port of Entry” online at www.portofentrypod.org, or on Facebook (www.facebook.com/portofentrypodcast) or Instagram (www.instagram.com/portofentrypod). Support our work at www.kpbs.org/donate. Search “Port of Entry” in the gifts section to get our sling bag as a thank-you gift. If your business or nonprofit wants to sponsor our show, email podcasts@kpbs.org. Text or call the "Port of Entry" team at 619-452-0228‬ anytime with questions or comments about the show.

Jesse Daner and Pamela Figueroa’s love story is a modern one.

Like lots of couples these days, they met through an app on their smartphones.

Unlike most couples, though, Daner and Figueroa live on opposite sides of the U.S.-Mexico border fence. In normal times, when there’s not a pandemic rocking the world, having to navigate an international border makes it difficult for cross-border couples to stay together. But these two have managed to stay connected despite the fact that Figueroa can’t easily cross the border because of COVID-19 restrictions.

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From KPBS and PRX, “Port of Entry” tells cross-border stories that connect us. In our recurring “Border Voices” series, we feature shorter stories spotlighting people who identify as transborder, fronterizx or simply have something to say about how the U.S.-Mexico border has changed their lives. In this episode, Daner and Figueroa talk about how their shared love of learning languages brought them together, and how they’re not letting a partially closed border keep them apart.