Getting out of a war-torn country is one battle but another is actually getting to a safe, new place to call home.
No one knows that better than Londoner Widad Mikhael, who fears for the safety for her family members trying to leave Syria.
"They had to get on buses, buses were being pulled over by ISIS members, coming in and investigating, looking for specific people and getting off the bus. So it was very, very scary for them to get to where they are right now," says Mikhael.
She's describing the journey her niece's family went through trying to flee from Syria into Lebanon.
It's just one of many stories that have become headlines the last few weeks, as millions of refugees try to escape from Syria and Iraq.
Four years ago, Mikhael began a very complicated and lengthy paperwork process for a "group five sponsorship" to help bring her family to London, Ont.
But they remain stuck in Lebanon waiting for their paperwork to be processed at the Canadian embassy.
"I have not heard a word. I have been trying to reach out to somebody to give me something, and it's like I'm in the dark," she says.
The original application had been denied due to missing information, at which point they had to restart the process from the beginning.
"You need a degree to fill this paperwork, it's not simple. There's questions upon questions and pages upon pages," Mikhael says.
According to London NDP candidate Irene Mathyssen, the system is flawed, and there is a lack of communication due to staff shortages at the Canadian embassy.
"If there is a piece missing in the file - it could be something as simple as a signature, or a birth cirtificate, it could be very simple - then that message has to be conveyed to the applicant so they can fix it right away," says Mathyssen.
As for Mikhael, she continues to worry about her family's well-being as she hopes to hear from someone that can help expedite their paperwork.
"I can't get anywhere, we're ready for them. We just want to bring them here," she says.
