Campaign Story

My husband and I have been married for six years, and for five of those years, we’ve been trying to start a family. From the beginning, we knew it might be challenging because I have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a condition that affects hormone levels and ovulation. But we are hopeful, committed, and determined to grow our family.

Our first hurdle was getting me to ovulate regularly. For nearly two years, I was on Clomid, a medication designed to help stimulate ovulation. Each month brought hope, followed by heartbreak. Still, we pressed on, believing that with persistence and medical guidance, we would get there.

After completing an HSG test—which showed that my fallopian tubes were open and healthy—we moved on to intrauterine insemination (IUI). Unfortunately, each attempt was blocked by cysts that formed over my eggs, making it impossible to proceed. Month after month, our hearts sank with each cancellation.
Despite the setbacks, we remained hopeful. We pursued further testing and underwent a full genetic screening. It was through this process that we learned something that changed the course of our journey: both my husband and I are carriers of a gene mutation that causes GJB2-related nonsyndromic hearing loss 1A. This means there is a 25% chance that any child we conceive naturally could be born with significant hearing loss.
Given this information, our fertility specialist recommended in vitro fertilization (IVF) with preimplantation genetic testing (PGT). This would allow us to screen embryos before implantation, ensuring the healthiest start for our future child and preventing the transmission of this hereditary condition.

We are both professionals working in higher education, where we are deeply committed to serving students and our community. We work hard and are proud of what we’ve built together. Our insurance, while generally comprehensive, unfortunately does not cover any fertility treatments—not even diagnostic testing. Every appointment, every procedure, and every medication has been paid for entirely out of pocket.

We are deeply in love and share a dream of bringing a child into our lives to nurture, guide, and raise with love and joy. We imagine story time, school drop-offs, watching our child grow and learn, and being the kind of parents who show up with love and stability every day. But IVF is expensive—far beyond what we can afford on our own.

We are applying for this grant because we have exhausted so many avenues and still hold on to the belief that we are meant to be parents. We are not giving up—but we do need help.
This grant would be a lifeline. It would give us the chance to take the next step toward building our family with the best possible medical support. We are not just asking for funding; we are asking for the opportunity to realize a dream that has been in our hearts for so long. Your support could make all the difference in bringing a long-awaited child into a loving, prepared, and deeply grateful home.

Thank you for considering our story.