Building Legacies, One Baby at a Time: Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy

Rebecca Hochreiter

CMO of GoStork

Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy is a family planning agency that helps intended parents of all backgrounds achieve parenthood. It was a pleasure to hear from Program Director Alex Maron about the agency’s three decades of experience, highlights from their history, the excitement of witnessing great developments in reproductive medicine, and the rewards of working with incredible families, donors and surrogates. Here’s what Alex had to say!

1. What inspired you to work in the fertility industry?

Each member of our team has their own personal connection to this field. Our program was founded as the vision of one woman who struggled to build her own family and saw the dire need for others that wasn’t being fulfilled. Our program started as the first egg donation program in the nation at a time when the only way a person could find a donor was with a familial match. Our team has two experienced surrogates working behind the scenes, and we all have had friends or family impacted by infertility. We are passionate about making families possible for parents from all walks of life.

2. We’d love to hear the Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy’s story – can you share some highlights of the journey starting with opening in 1991?

Since our inception in 1991 we have grown from a small program started by one remarkable human being as her passion project to help others, into a dynamic team supporting family building all over the world. Some of the most exciting moments have come from being a part of this field during revolutionary reproductive medical advances, such as ICSI and vitrification. But more exciting than the medical achievements, are the personal stories of each family we have worked with along the way. It would be difficult to choose just one special story. We are honored by the many parents, surrogates and egg donors who still keep in touch years later.

 

Plenty to give thanks for!

 

3. What has been your most rewarding experience personally over your years in this work?

It’s so hard to narrow this down because every journey that ends with a healthy baby is rewarding. One special story close to our hearts was with a South American family. The parents were quite young and the mom had been an organ transplant recipient with various health issues, she knew she would need a surrogate to carry her baby. The mom was able to create embryos with her own eggs but only got three day 3 embryos. They transferred the two that looked the best with no luck. Then they transferred the final one and it didn’t look very promising. Not only did they get pregnant and have a wonderful journey with their incredible surrogate, they had a BIG baby girl weighing in at nearly ten pounds! We learned early on that miracles were possible, sometimes even poor looking embryos are beautiful healthy babies. These miraculous experiences humble us all, and we are very grateful to the surrogates who take on the hopes and dreams of parents even when the odds don’t look reassuring.

 

Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy Staff

 

4. What is your advice for intended parents just beginning to consider surrogacy?

Surrogacy is a unique and powerful human experience. If you open your heart to this option for having your family you will find that it can be very special, memorable, and inspiring. A child born through surrogacy and/or egg donation is such a wanted child because so many people came together to make their birth possible. We believe strongly in the power of intention and the impact that positive intentions can have in this process, in parenthood, and in life.

5. Is there anything else you’d like to share about Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy?

We feel that what sets us apart from many programs is that our doors don’t close at 5pm on Friday. This isn’t just a job for our team, this is our passion project. We are always accessible to our clients for emergencies. We are personally invested in their success, and ensuring they feel supported through every step of the journey. We are there for the sorrows, worries and the joys; always in our clients’ corner to provide comprehensive care. Children are the future, and children born into loving homes to diverse families are the legacy we believe matters most.

 

Surrogate Coordinator Shoshannah Ingersoll holding the baby from her first surrogacy

 

Thank you, Alex, it was a pleasure getting to know you and Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy! Intended parents: check back here over the coming weeks for more featured providers.

Ready to start your search for a surrogacy agency? Learn more about Hatch Egg Donation and Surrogacy and many other wonderful options, here.