ESTERO, Fla. - An Estero church is stepping up to help another congregation's pastor, after he was suddenly deported last month.

Rev. Byron Sagastume was sent back to his native Guatamala, following what family and friends say was a paperwork mistake when he first came to the U.S. in the 90's to escape a civil war.

"When I first heard that Pastor Byron was going through this, it grieved my heart," said Pastor Frank Brand of The First Baptist Church of Estero. His church shared worship space with Sagastume's Hispanic congregation for several years, a time when Brand got to know his colleague well.

"This man is solid," Brand said. "He loves the Lord, and not only did he take care of his family and he helped people in the community, but he was a good friend."

Mary Green has known Sagastume from his second job doing construction work, and they quickly became friends.

"There were two, three carloads of people who went to Miami to speak on his behalf (at his deportation hearing)," Green said. "But the judge didn't want to hear from us."

Green worked with First Baptist Church to set up a fund, hoping to help the wife and three year-old son the pastor had to leave behind.

"To see this good man ripped out of his family, out of his church, out of our community, is just a travesty," Green said.

The pastor's family and friends expect he will be able to return to the U.S., they're just not sure when.

Donations can be made in person or by mail; checks should be made payable to First Baptist Church, with a note for the "Pastor Byron Sagastume Benevolence Fund" on the check. The church's mailing address is 20300 Trailside Dr, Estero, FL, 33928.