Yellowknife couple trying to help Syrian family escape war-torn country

A couple in Yellowknife say it's been a nightmare this summertrying to help a Syrian family they met at an orphanage 15 years ago escape the war-torn country.

Mark and Rhonda Miller worked at an orphanage in Lebanon in 1995 and connected with two young sisters, Noura and Gemma, and their brother George.

Earlier this year, the couple started to worry about the siblings, now in their 20s and 30s, and eventually tracked them down in the Syrian city of Aleppo one of the hardest hit cities in the four-and-a-half year civil war.

"I had dreams for several nights of going there by boat. I was in a boat trying to rescue them," Mark Miller says.

The Millers were able to connect with the siblings by phone this summer. The family of six now includes Noura's husband and their two young children.

"She was so delighted that we hadn't forgotten them," Rhonda Miller says. "They were so happy, they cared more about how we were doing."

"It took about fiveminutes of talking before I said, 'no really, how are you? What is a daily life like?'"

Rhonda Miller says the siblings were cautious about what they said on the phone, but they did say they had no water, had spotty electricity, and it was dangerous to get food.

"We found out their neighbour had been killed by one of these barrel bombs that been dropped by the government. Water was off for many weeks when we were talking to them. They couldn't go anywhere," Mark Miller says.

The couple offered to help, but the family declined, saying it would cost $200 US for each person to get to the Lebanese border, and they didn't have the money for the six family members.

"And we said $200 each!? That's nothing for us. We will do that for you. So that's when it began," Rhonda Miller says.

'It's been a bit of a nightmare'

With the help of a Lebanese pastor, they came up with a plan for the family to go to Lebanon and get refugee status from the Canadian Embassy.

Last Saturday, with financial support from the Millers, the family made a dangerous trip to a coastal town in Syria near the Lebanese border. But just this week, the Millers received word from Northwest Territories MP Dennis Bevington's office that the Lebanese consulate is closed, and will not grant refugee status.

Rhonda Miller has called embassies all over the Middle East and in Ottawa, but isn't getting anywhere. She says it's been a nightmare.

"We're not giving up...it's kind of a daily journey what's next," she says.The family spoketo the CBC in hopes that it might make a difference.

"I feel like someone out there might know the next step and they might reach out and help."

For now, the Millers say, though the family is still in danger, they're in a safer part of the country. They hope the federal government will step up its efforts to help in the Syrian crisis.

"I hope we can continue to put pressure on the government that Canadians actually really do want to help, and I think the majority do," Rhonda Miller says.

"There's so much red tape, and these are people...they're just like you and I. They just want to raise their children in peace."