Infinite Hope
Donation protected
Neices.
Nephews.
Godsons.
Goddaughters.
Students. Neighbors. Friends.
We care for and interact with children every day.
We have children's books in our bookcases, toys in our living room, and children's clothes in our closets.
Yet there are no children in our home.
We are Regina and Jahbari, and we'd like to be parents.
You have no idea how much of a hurdle it is to write these words. How hard it is to admit a need for help, with something so many people do not. But we believe in our future, and we believe in the village, and so we're opening up a dialogue.
Infertility affects 7.4 million people throughout the United States. We know this because for the last 6 years, we've been working to make other people aware of these facts. Through our website, The Broken Brown Egg, we've worked to help countless others reach their goals of being parents, through support, communication, and listening ears.
We would like to think that now is finally our turn, but finances stand in the way of progress.
After almost 8 years of misdiagnoses, and self-advocating for better medical care, we were finally headed towards the correct fertility treatments, when we were presented the opportunity to adopt. Putting our plans aside, and using our fertility funds for adoption fees instead, we stopped our lives to prepare to care for this special new person, but her birthmother had a change of heart two days after birth. Again on hold, we were called back to foster the same infant, and while our hearts were broken, we could not leave a child without care, so we did not hesitate to step in to take care of her for the first six months of her life.
As heartbreaking as it was to let her go, we did what we had to, and finally returned to our medical plans where we finally reached the threshold of In Vitro Fertilization, only to learn that we were now facing a $2,000 bill just to walk in the door, AFTER insurance, and NOT including medications, which are close to another $4k.
In pain, frustration, and insurmountable disappointment, we've never stopped loving and caring for all the children in our lives. We've sold t-shirts , started charging for services we used to give friends for free, and pitched what other spare money we could, into a second savings account, but now we're putting our pride aside, and saying out loud: We Need Help.
We believe that caring for young people is an investment in the future of this world. We would greatly appreciate your making an investment in us.
Some answers to questions you may have(but not want to ask out loud, LOL):
Not to be nosey, but why do you need IVF?
It's cool, we understand your curiosity. As a couple who advocate for infertility awareness, we're perfectly fine with explaining, and encourage others to become more aware as well. We have quite a few hurdles that make InVitro Fertilization our only route for biological children. For more information on our journey, feel free to get caught up on our blog !
Have you considered adoption?
Yes. We have thought very heavily about adoption, as evidenced in the fact that we've tried it already. LOL While things didn't work out for us, we are still hoping to adopt one day. That said, adoption costs can range anywhere from $16,000-$40,000, and as we've experienced, contains just as much emotional stress.
Adoption through the foster care system is significantly cheaper, but to be honest, as we've already expereienced a "change of heart" situation, we don't feel comfortable going that route, as the primary goal of foster care is reunification. To be honest, our hearts just can't take another change of heart.
Lastly, we also don't feel that adopted children should be treated as consolation prizes or second choices. We'd like to be foster or adoptive parents one day, but as for today, we'd like to have the chance to try for a biological child first.
If you have insurance, what is the deal with this money?
Illinois is thankfully one of the few states that has mandatory infertility coverage, so the actual In Vitro Fertilization procedure is covered for us. However, this does not include the cost of medications, embryo & sperm storage, or the special urology testing we require.
Why Crowdfunding?
We were highly hesitant to go this route for our fundraising. As we mentioned, we've created other avenues to raise this money, be it our t-shirt shop, or graphic design work, etc. It was actually family members (and a couple friends) who asked that we set up a site like this for them to contribute to and share. At the very least, this page is our soapbox.
We appreciate you for taking the time to read our journey, and giving us the opportunity to be heard.
Nephews.
Godsons.
Goddaughters.
Students. Neighbors. Friends.
We care for and interact with children every day.
We have children's books in our bookcases, toys in our living room, and children's clothes in our closets.
Yet there are no children in our home.
We are Regina and Jahbari, and we'd like to be parents.
You have no idea how much of a hurdle it is to write these words. How hard it is to admit a need for help, with something so many people do not. But we believe in our future, and we believe in the village, and so we're opening up a dialogue.
Infertility affects 7.4 million people throughout the United States. We know this because for the last 6 years, we've been working to make other people aware of these facts. Through our website, The Broken Brown Egg, we've worked to help countless others reach their goals of being parents, through support, communication, and listening ears.
We would like to think that now is finally our turn, but finances stand in the way of progress.
After almost 8 years of misdiagnoses, and self-advocating for better medical care, we were finally headed towards the correct fertility treatments, when we were presented the opportunity to adopt. Putting our plans aside, and using our fertility funds for adoption fees instead, we stopped our lives to prepare to care for this special new person, but her birthmother had a change of heart two days after birth. Again on hold, we were called back to foster the same infant, and while our hearts were broken, we could not leave a child without care, so we did not hesitate to step in to take care of her for the first six months of her life.
As heartbreaking as it was to let her go, we did what we had to, and finally returned to our medical plans where we finally reached the threshold of In Vitro Fertilization, only to learn that we were now facing a $2,000 bill just to walk in the door, AFTER insurance, and NOT including medications, which are close to another $4k.
In pain, frustration, and insurmountable disappointment, we've never stopped loving and caring for all the children in our lives. We've sold t-shirts , started charging for services we used to give friends for free, and pitched what other spare money we could, into a second savings account, but now we're putting our pride aside, and saying out loud: We Need Help.
We believe that caring for young people is an investment in the future of this world. We would greatly appreciate your making an investment in us.
Some answers to questions you may have(but not want to ask out loud, LOL):
Not to be nosey, but why do you need IVF?
It's cool, we understand your curiosity. As a couple who advocate for infertility awareness, we're perfectly fine with explaining, and encourage others to become more aware as well. We have quite a few hurdles that make InVitro Fertilization our only route for biological children. For more information on our journey, feel free to get caught up on our blog !
Have you considered adoption?
Yes. We have thought very heavily about adoption, as evidenced in the fact that we've tried it already. LOL While things didn't work out for us, we are still hoping to adopt one day. That said, adoption costs can range anywhere from $16,000-$40,000, and as we've experienced, contains just as much emotional stress.
Adoption through the foster care system is significantly cheaper, but to be honest, as we've already expereienced a "change of heart" situation, we don't feel comfortable going that route, as the primary goal of foster care is reunification. To be honest, our hearts just can't take another change of heart.
Lastly, we also don't feel that adopted children should be treated as consolation prizes or second choices. We'd like to be foster or adoptive parents one day, but as for today, we'd like to have the chance to try for a biological child first.
If you have insurance, what is the deal with this money?
Illinois is thankfully one of the few states that has mandatory infertility coverage, so the actual In Vitro Fertilization procedure is covered for us. However, this does not include the cost of medications, embryo & sperm storage, or the special urology testing we require.
Why Crowdfunding?
We were highly hesitant to go this route for our fundraising. As we mentioned, we've created other avenues to raise this money, be it our t-shirt shop, or graphic design work, etc. It was actually family members (and a couple friends) who asked that we set up a site like this for them to contribute to and share. At the very least, this page is our soapbox.
We appreciate you for taking the time to read our journey, and giving us the opportunity to be heard.
Organizer
Regina Townsend
Organizer
Oak Park, IL
