Hired! :)

Raymond Anthony Cruz Rico, J.D.

Joins

Garcia Immigration Law Firm, LLC

Garcia Immigration Law Firm, LLC in Kansas City, Kansas, welcomes Mr. Raymond Rico as an associate attorney.  Raymond was humbly born and raised in the Argentine barrio of Kansas City, Kansas.  Raymond is proud of his Mexican roots having a father who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico armed only with a second grade education and a trashbag of belongings and a mother whose family migrated from Mexico and followed the railroad and other industrial labor factories eventually settling in Kansas City’s working class neighborhoods of Armourdale and Argentine.  Raymond is a USD 500 public school product who graduated from Sumner Academy of Arts & Sciences in 2001.  Raymond went on to KU and graduated in 2005 with degrees in Political Science and Latin American Studies while gaining experience interning at the Kansas City LULAC Educational Center, Coro Kansas City, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Internship Program, Governor Kathleen Sebelius’ office, and the Kansas Hispanic & Latino American Affairs Commission. 

After graduating from KU, Raymond had a short stay as an organizer with Community Housing of Wyandotte County until Raymond was selected to be a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Fellow in Washington DC.  Through his fellowship, Raymond secured a policy analyst position with the National Immigration Law Center where he pushed for comprehensive immigration reform, fought anti-immigrant federal and state legislation, advocated in the halls of congress, spoke across the country about immigrant rights, and organized/facilitated the national United We DREAM Coalition in efforts to pass the DREAM Act.  Raymond completed his time in Washington working for the Alliance for Children and Families to advance the causes of non-profits throughout the United States. 

For the last three years, Raymond has attended the UMKC School of Law and led UMKC’s Hispanic Law Student Association.  Raymond graduated in May, 2011, and was admitted into the Missouri Bar September, 2011.  Raymond began working as a legal intern at the Garcia Immigration Law Firm, LLC in May, 2009 attending to the various needs of clients from all around the world who reside in the Kansas City area and surrounding states.  As Raymond transitions to an associate attorney position, Raymond states: “I am grateful and humbled by the opportunity to join the Garcia Immigration Law Firm and its wonderful staff as an associate attorney and look forward to growing professionally while serving the community alongside my longtime friend and mentor, Teodoro Garcia Jr.”  In addition to practicing immigration law, Raymond plans to become a more active member of the Kansas City community through participating in various associations and organizations, plans to advocate for immigrant rights, especially immigrant student rights, to fight apathy through civic and political engagement, and focus on promoting education in every way possible among the next generation of young Latinos.