Help Ben and Erik have a baby!
Donation protected
Hello! We are Ben and Erik, and we're on a journey starting a family through surrogacy. We've been in this process for a little over a year now, filled with ups and downs. Last year, with the help of some fundraising from the community, we were able to go through an egg retrieval cycle and create embryos. However, after doing testing on the embryos, the doctors discovered that both embryos had chromosomal abnormalities which would have resulted in failed pregnancy. So, $35,000 later, we were left back at square one with no other choice but to start at the beginning again.
However, we've had the huge blessing of being included in the Men Having Babies "Gay Parenting Assistance Program" for 2018. If you haven't heard of it, MHB is a fantastic organization that helps couples like Erik and me become parents. The way their grant program works is we get matched with pro bono services by providers, such as IVF clinics, surrogacy agencies, etc. It significantly reduces the cost of a surrogacy journey. So far we've been matched with Western Fertility in Los Angeles, which will provide both IVF and surrogate-matching services.
However, there are still costs that the grant program can't cover. In general, these costs are related to the surrogate themselves, such as the surrogate's compensation, health insurance, certain medical costs, etc. That's why we've started this fundraiser. Our goal in total is to raise $75,000 by next July, and this includes our own personal savings as well. You'll see in the donations on this site the money that Erik and I have saved in addition to what our friends and family have donated to us. We want to be completely transparent in this process to show just how ready we are to grow our family.
If you're reading this, you may have already helped us with our first round of IVF, and we're incredibly grateful for helping us with that, despite the negative outcome. Whether you are able to help again or share our story, we can't express how grateful we will be to finally start a family with your help!
However, we've had the huge blessing of being included in the Men Having Babies "Gay Parenting Assistance Program" for 2018. If you haven't heard of it, MHB is a fantastic organization that helps couples like Erik and me become parents. The way their grant program works is we get matched with pro bono services by providers, such as IVF clinics, surrogacy agencies, etc. It significantly reduces the cost of a surrogacy journey. So far we've been matched with Western Fertility in Los Angeles, which will provide both IVF and surrogate-matching services.
However, there are still costs that the grant program can't cover. In general, these costs are related to the surrogate themselves, such as the surrogate's compensation, health insurance, certain medical costs, etc. That's why we've started this fundraiser. Our goal in total is to raise $75,000 by next July, and this includes our own personal savings as well. You'll see in the donations on this site the money that Erik and I have saved in addition to what our friends and family have donated to us. We want to be completely transparent in this process to show just how ready we are to grow our family.
If you're reading this, you may have already helped us with our first round of IVF, and we're incredibly grateful for helping us with that, despite the negative outcome. Whether you are able to help again or share our story, we can't express how grateful we will be to finally start a family with your help!
Fundraising team (2)
Benjamin Holladay-McCann
Organizer
Denver, CO
Erik Holladay-McCann
Team member
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