ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOX) - An English-born Missouri woman will not have to deport herself today, thanks to a last-minute deferral from the Department of Homeland Security.

Lauren Gray has lived here since she was four years old, but because she’s been legal under her parents’ Visas, she’s subject to deportation on her 21st birthday, which is today.

Senator Claire McCaskill was able to help Gray apply for a two-year deferral, which came through this morning. Gray will be able to stay under a work Visa that McCaskill says should arrive shortly.

The Senator says this story has a happy ending, but it’s evidence of a larger immigration problem in the country. She says if this happened in another state, the outcome might be different.

“There are many people in Congress that would not be willing to help under the circumstances because they believe that we should close our borders entirely,” she said.

Gray just graduated from Stephens College in Columbia in May. She is pursuing a career in dance.