(The following is part 2 of a two-week story. To read part 1, click here.)
In mid-2007, Chris and Sabrina Garcia were told by their doctors that they would not be able to conceive. As the couple began researching their fertility treatment options, they came across an alternative known as Embryo Adoption.
The program they first contacted was Snowflakes Embryo Adoption. Operated by Nightlight Christian Adoptions in Southern California, Snowflakes was the first Embryo Adoption program in the world.
Snowflakes works to match an adopting family with a donor couple assists with all necessary legal work and arrange the transportation of the embryos directly to the adopting couples’ clinic. For the Garcias, it seemed like the perfect fit.
“Everyone at Snowflakes was just fantastic,” said Sabrina. “Like any adoption, there are going to be curves and bumps – nothing is going to be perfectly easy. But they did a great job of putting us at ease throughout the process.”
Today, there are at least eight Embryo Adoption agencies in the United States as well as over 200 fertility clinic embryo donation programs. Though only a fraction is currently available for adoption, there are an estimated 500,000 embryos in frozen storage in the U.S. alone, according to a 2009 survey of clinics and cryobanks by the Embryo Adoption Awareness Center.
These embryos offer hope for couples like the Garcias who feel hopeless in the face of infertility. While Embryo Adoption is not for everyone, it does offer another alternative for the couple who deeply desires the experience of pregnancy.
In May of 2009, the Garcias’ journey came to completion as their Embryo Adoption resulted in the birth of their baby girl, Emma Grace.
“This is exactly what I was waiting for,” Sabrina said. “I always prayed and prayed that I could have a child. God answered those prayers – just not in the way I expected him to.”
“For a woman out there who has always dreamed of having an opportunity to experience pregnancy, this is it. Embryo Adoption is it.”
For more information visit www.snowflakes.org and www.embryoadoption.org.
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