Long-distance relationships are hard.

It’s even harder when children are involved and mom and dad are half a world apart.

Just ask Matthew Rehrig.

The West Penn Township man is currently working to bring his Japanese wife, Ayumi, and two children home to the United States.

“There are many reasons as to why we are moving back (from Japan),” Rehrig said.

Education and retirement options, as well as cost of living, work and life balance and their children’s global outlook on life were all factors in the family’s decision to relocate.

But one thing the couple of five years didn’t anticipate was the time and money it would take until husband, wife and children would be together again as a family.

Rehrig, who is a 2002 graduate of Tamaqua Area High School, moved back to his parents’ home in the United States in April following the passing of his grandfather.

From there, he began looking into immigration lawyers who could help him navigate the process of getting his wife, who remained in Japan with their children, her I-130, which is a petition for alien relative, while also working to secure employment to provide the funds needed for a lawyer.

In July, he chose the services of Norris, McLaughlin & Marcus out of Allentown, and the process began.

“Over the last two weeks I have been filling out questionnaires and corresponding with both the law firm and my wife daily in order to provide the most accurate information,” Rehrig said. “Immigration is very different from the way it used to work in the past. Just because we are married does not mean that she can just come over to America and be good to go.

“Right now one of the biggest issues is that there is no Immigration office in Japan. Everything must be walked back and forth between Japan and the U.S. This makes the process take longer. And if there is any mistake made on the paperwork, you must go back to the end of the line and start all over again.”

The couple’s children, Noah, 4, and Mia, 1, do not need an I-130 because they are dual citizens, Rehrig explained.

“Being so far apart from each other is very difficult,” he said. “Thanks to technology we are able to see and talk to each other daily. It’s still not the same as in the flesh.”

Rehrig met his wife after moving to Japan in 2012 from South Korea, where he was teaching English.

“We married on the Japanese holiday of Children’s day, or May 5, (2013),” he said. “That is kind of a family tradition with her family. Her mother and father were married on that date and so was her sister and brother-in-law. This way we can all celebrate our anniversaries together.”

The couple welcomed their son a year later, followed by their daughter last year.

To help cover the legal costs associated with the immigration process, as well as the three flights the family will need to take from Japan to Pennsylvania, which could cost in excess of $10,000, Rehrig has started a GoFundMe for his family’s journey.

“This is my first time ever doing something like this,” he said. “I know there are people out there who need much more help than I do. If people do want to reach out and help, all I can say is thank you very much for helping me with the process of bringing my wife and kids all together.”

To help Rehrig and his family in this journey, visit www.gofundme.com/rrbqch-bring-a-family-together.