Some of the issues surrounding our nation’s struggle over immigration became a bit more personal this year for those of us here at the newspaper.

Staff writer Ryan Kushner, a Pennsylvania native who joined us last summer, was visited during the Christmas holiday by his fiancé, Nhi Tran. She and Ryan came to our house Christmas Eve for an annual family event and we quickly came to know and admire her. Nhi is a native of Vietnam. She and her brother both came to the United States on student visas a few years ago, and that’s when she met Ryan.