“Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth.” So writes Solomon in Psalm 127, and we agree. For the last six years, we have been earnestly praying that the Lord would grant us this good gift of a child, and for the last six years, he has, in his strange providence, decided to withhold this gift from us.

After praying and reflecting and seeking counsel over the past several years, we have decided to pursue embryo adoption, and we’d love your help.

First, what is embryo adoption?

When couples and individuals pursue growing their families through IVF (in vitro fertilization), eggs from the genetic mother are fertilized by sperm from the genetic father in a lab. These fertilized eggs, or embryos, are then implanted in the mother to carry to term. Often, more eggs are fertilized than will be used, so the parents have a decision to make. They can keep them in frozen storage indefinitely, discard the embryos, donate them for medical research, or they can put the embryos up for adoption.

That’s where embryo adoption comes in.

When a couple like us pursues embryo adoption, we adopt these children while they’re still frozen. Then the embryos will be thawed and implanted into the adopting mother (Amber), who, Lord willing, will carry the baby to term like any other pregnancy. When the baby is born in the hospital, he or she will be legally our child from the start - no further legal action is required.

Second, why pursue embryo adoption?

We believe that life begins at conception. We believe that, from the moment that an egg is fertilized by a sperm, we are talking about a unique human life, a child made in the image of God. And because these children are frozen and alone, we want to rescue them and give them a chance to live in their mother’s womb and to be born like any other child. The road to physical birth is treacherous for these children; they must survive the thawing process, the transfer, and the pregnancy. We want to do what we can to help these children have a chance.

Third, how can you help?

1) Pray. Pray that we would match with a set of embryos, that the Lord would protect these children, and that we would receive the resources needed to complete this rescue mission.

2) Give. The embryo adoption process, like other options for adoption, costs money. There are both one-time adoption fees and recurring medical fees for each embryo. Since it is our hope to adopt three embryos, our fundraising goal is $35,000. A payment schedule can be found in the photo gallery above. This would cover the adoption and medical fees for all three embryos. This number does not include the normal medical costs of the pregnancy itself.

To give people an opportunity to partner with us in this journey, we are doing a puzzle fundraiser. Each puzzle piece costs $50, so a $50 gift buys one piece, a $100 gift buys two, and so on (though you're welcome to give any amount!). We will write your name on the puzzle piece(s) you purchase, and then we’ll hang the finished puzzle in the baby’s room. Every time we look at the finished puzzle on the wall, we can tell our children that these were the people who helped them have a chance at life.

Please let us know if you have any questions! We know embryo adoption is new to many people, so we’d be happy to explain more. We hope you’ll prayerfully consider joining us in this endeavor.

For those who would prefer to give directly (without fees taken out) you can send us a check in the mail or venmo us at @ash189.

Love,

Alex & Amber Hammond