Angel Families had a day of remembrance we never should have needed 

On Feb. 23, 2026, my wife and I stood in the White House for the National Angel Family Day Proclamation. It was a solemn gathering — heavy with grief yet filled with resolve.

President Trump had chosen to establish this day as an acknowledgment of the thousands of Angel Families in our country. These are average, everyday families like our own that had loved ones ripped away from them to dangerous criminal illegal immigrants allowed into the country.

We were grateful to Trump for having the courage to recognize the lives lost and the families forever altered by crimes committed by those who should never have been in this country to begin with.

But as we listened, another feeling crept in alongside the gratitude: disbelief.

We were in utter disbelief of the situation that had been foisted upon us and so many of the other families at this event with us.

No nation should require a day of remembrance for lives lost to totally preventable policy failures. No parent should have to bury his or her child because elected officials placed ideology above enforcement. No family should be forced to navigate unimaginable grief while being told, absurdly, that the system worked as intended.

There was failure at the federal level in securing the border. There was failure at the state level in enforcing the law. There was failure in prioritizing the safety of American citizens. 

And these failures took our sweet Katie’s life. 

Our daughter, Katie Abraham, was killed on Jan. 19, 2025, on the streets of........

© The Hill