A Canadian permanent resident is hoping for a miracle after the United States rejected his request to visit his ailing mother, who is suffering from a brain tumour.

Alan Arellano grew up in San Diego, where his mother Theresa still lives. He hasn’t seen her in 11 years and her condition makes travelling to Canada difficult.

Arellano says he didn’t know that he was born in Mexico until age 18, when he applied for college and was deemed an “illegal alien.”

After that, he was deported to a country he says he barely knew.

“I didn't know any of my family in Mexico,” he says. “I didn't even know Spanish that well … that's how much of an American I was.”

Barred from returning to the U.S., Arellano arrived in Alberta in 2006 as a temporary foreign worker. His first job was at Tim Hortons in Olds, Alta., where he worked his way up to manager. Now a permanent resident, Arellano manages a lodge in Bashaw, Alta.

After learning of his mother’s brain cancer, Arellano gathered his documentation and paid about $2,000 to apply for a visit on humanitarian grounds, he says.

The reasons listed for his denial are a lack of financial support and a controlled substance violation. Arellano says he has no criminal record anywhere.

Arellano can appeal the decision, and he says lawyers have told him they see no reason for the denial, but he is afraid that any appeal decision may come too late.

In the meantime, he’s been supporting his mom over the phone. He even shaved a “scar” into his hair to match the one on his mother’s skull.

But he says that’s just not the same as seeing her in person. “You can't compare giving her a hug and giving her a kiss,” he says.

Arellano is hoping someone will hear his plea and cut the red tape.

“God willing, I will be successful,” he says.

With a report from CTV Calgary’s Shaun Frenette