Larissa and Andrew are a loving couple who have been married nearly 12 years. They love traveling, spending time with friends and enjoying the comforts of home with their three cats. Over the years there have been wonderful memories made, but also major struggles as Andrew is a non-Hodgkin Lymphoma survivor and Larissa is currently fighting her own cancer battle. …

Chrissy and Alex met in 2008 at Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI, and quickly formed a strong connection. After graduation, they pursued teaching careers in different states — Alex in Maryland and Chrissy in North Carolina. Despite the distance, they grew closer, bonding over their shared love for education and dreams of starting a family. In 2014, they moved to …

It all started at a daycare in Peoria, IL where we both worked. As time went on, Kynise and I became friends. Friends turned into best friends that turned into a seven years and counting relationship! Through the years, Keva and Kynise lived in Peoria and then moved to Chicago in 2018 to begin their family. Keva is an Assistant …

Hannah and I have come to know that our story is not uncommon among the many people seeking to start a family. We have been together for eight years, slowly building our lives and home together. Three years ago, we sat together joyfully and planned what we thought would be the start of building our family to fill the home …

Hi everyone! We’re Adam and Haley! We were first introduced back in 2012 by my older brother during our weekly family and friends’ game night. We clicked almost instantly and soon started dating.  In 2018, we got married and started trying to expand our family. After 5 years of trying with no success we learned we had unexplained infertility. We …

Max and Emily met in 2019 in Washington, DC, and have since built a life together in Chicago with their Goldendoodle puppy, Melo (named in honor of Carmelo Anthony, a nod to Max’s hometown, Syracuse). Before meeting Max, Emily learned that she inherited the CHEK2 mutation from her mother, who tragically lost her battle with breast cancer at the age …

Michael was willing to miss a March Madness Purdue Basketball game to go on a date with Chrissy, so that’s how we knew our relationship was going somewhere. After months of building a strong friendship, we were both pretty certain that we had met the person we would spend forever with. We got married during the pandemic and while we …

Hi everyone! We’re Nicole and Mike. We met five years ago through Bumble, with an invisible string that included us both going to the same junior high, high school, and college just three years apart.  Through testing, we found out that IVF is our only option to conceive at this time. We started our first IVF cycle in May, and …

Soraya and Dani’s love story began in yoga class one Saturday morning in the spring of 2017. Their yin-yang relationship has seen the couple through both joyous and difficult times, and has always managed to bring the couple closer together. Dani is a professional jazz musician who moved to the United States from Israel at the age of 17 to …

To set the scene, it is Chicago, 2012. Courtney is living downtown, and Aaron is in from Wyoming visiting his sister, who just so happens to be Courtney’s best friend. “Call Me Maybe” is blaring on the radio, life is good. But fate had other plans, and they wouldn’t meet again until 2021 in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Fast-forward to a …

When we met in college in 2013, we quickly bonded over music and our similar senses of humor. Our strong foundation as friends (and the crushes we had on one another) lead us to beginning our relationship. Eight years later, we’re married and living in the city with our dog, Scout. Gabriella works in the non-profit sector, assisting immigrant and …

Allyson and Matt’s story began in St. Louis when they were 12 years old, and their families met through the synagogue. Shortly after, they started at the same middle school. They became friends and then dated throughout high school. College took them in separate directions, but after graduating, they reunited at Lollapalooza in Chicago. Allyson jumped into Matt’s arms, and …

Amanda and Courtney’s love story, which began in 2012 with a deep connection blossomed into a lifelong partnership when they finally tied the knot in 2021 the only fashion they knew how — a grand adventure! Together, they’ve explored the world with a shared sense of adventure, always seeking new experiences and cherishing the beauty of nature. Now, they are …

Corie and Kevin’s journey began in 2012, when they were seniors in high school. After a few years of uncertainty about their future together, they started dating in 2015. When they got married in 2021, they knew they wanted to start a family right away. After a year of trying with no success, they discovered that Corie had a pituitary …

Prachi and Dev’s story began in 2020, a year filled with promise and the excitement of new beginnings. From the outset, Dev and Prachi were united by a deep bond, forged through shared values and dreams. As they navigated life together, they encountered numerous challenges, each one strengthening their relationship and deepening their commitment to one another. However, none of …

I am beyond excited to have received a grant from JUF! I have wanted to become a mom since a young age and have had difficulty making it happen. The support provided by JUF to help me on my journey to motherhood is incredibly appreciated. While the process might look different than I expected, I am thrilled to start my …

Lindsey and Ashley met back in 2012 at work, but their love story truly took flight during the pandemic. With countless Covid-era hangouts that turned into a deep connection, they eventually become a couple in 2020. They took the next step in 2021 with their engagement, and by 2022, they were thrilled to marry and begin building their life together. …

​​Melissa and John matched on a dating app, Coffee Meets Bagel, in March 2020. They quickly bonded over a shared sense of humor and positive outlook on life. They also enjoy living a healthy and active lifestyle together. Everything fell into place, and they married in their backyard with their closest family members in attendance. After being unable to achieve …

I am so grateful for the help of CCFB/JUF in my journey to becoming a parent. I am an educator who conducts research on Jewish languages. I come from a long line of strong Jewish women, and I am looking forward to creating my own mishpacha (מִשׁפָּחָה – family). I hope to update soon with good news! Lily is a …

Nicole and Alex are a couple of nerds living in one of Chicago’s suburbs. Nicole has her LCPC and works for a nonprofit mental-health outreach agency, and Alex edits books. They share a love of board games and their three cats: Rogue, Siryn, and Pixie (whose names are all both fantasy terms and X-Men characters). The couple first met at …

We met back in 2015 and during our almost nine years together, we have partnered through life’s challenges, from struggling with personal health issues, through pandemic isolation and job changes, and surviving the loss of a parent. We have always been a dynamic pair, by each other’s side whenever it counts. You won’t find one of us without the strong …

Our journey together began in Chicago where we first met in 2015. We married in June 2020, during the peak of Covid, and later on were able to safely celebrate our marriage with friends and family in June 2022. Eager to start a family, we were excited to become pregnant in November 2022. During the third trimester, abnormalities were detected …

Rus and Yosi met nine years ago and have been married for almost eight years. Rus was born and raised in NYC while Yosi is a native Midwesterner. Together, they love traveling the world, and also enjoy cooking and baking. Rus and Yosi have experienced infertility in multiple forms over the last several years and are extremely appreciative of the …

Eugene and I (Jenna) met online in 2015 and have been inseparable ever since. We share a love for family, food, travel, and our dog, Maddie.  We completed comprehensive genetic testing in 2023 and learned we are both carriers for the same genetic disorder. This news was quite a surprise to both of us, as well as our families. After …

Carley and Ethan’s journey together began at the University of Illinois, where an AEPHi/AEPi event brought them together. Both hailing from the north Chicago suburbs and pursuing degrees in Economics, their connection was immediate and enduring. After graduating, their adventure took them to several cities – from San Francisco to Los Angeles, then back to Chicago, and finally settling in …

Hi all! We’re Brianna and Ben.  We’re city-loving Chicagoans who met through an app (Coffee Meets Bagel) 7.5 years ago, and had our first date at Jeni’s Ice Cream on Southport Ave (try the Brown Butter Almond Brittle!).  Our lives have since become centered around our little Southport Corridor, including getting married at our favorite restaurant (Ella Elli) in 2020 …

We met back in 1999, when we were both in fourth grade. After a long friendship and an even longer courtship (including five years of long-distance dating), we got married in December 2015. As we began planning to expand our family, it became clear IVF would be our most likely path to having a successful outcome.  We are so excited …

The first night we met was at an event called “Jews and Brews” where we felt the chemistry right away. After sitting down at our table, we ended up talking for so long that when we finally looked away from each other we realized that everyone else who had started the night at our table had long since left the …

We have always wanted to be mothers but as lesbians, we knew our journey to parenthood would be different than the paths of our straight friends. We are so grateful that the CCFB/JUF grant is helping us to complete our queer bayit ne’eman b’yisrael (faithful Jewish family).  We are both deeply involved in the Jewish community and excited to raise …

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2018 at age 30. My daughter (our 1st and only child) was born in May 2017, and I found a lump while I was breastfeeding her. Soon after that, I was also diagnosed with a BRCA2 mutation, and elected to have a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. In the window between my surgery …

Thanks to the Chicago Coalition for Family Building, Kim and Jeff were proud to welcome their twins, Eve and Emilia, in 2019!

Our first due date was supposed to be in June of 2019. We had been dreaming of a family and were really, really excited when we found out we were pregnant. Our 8-week ultrasound looked good and the doctor told us our baby was strong. After we found out we were expecting, we did genetic testing through the Sarnoff Center …

We are so thankful to have heard about the Chicago Coalition for Family Building, and to have the opportunity to apply for a grant. When we learned about Katie’s carrier status and made the decision to pursue IVF, we had serious concerns about the cost. As we look to start a family, being selected to receive a grant would be …

My name is Aset and my husband is Emperor. Our fertility journey started before we even knew we were on it! We met our freshman year in college and immediately connected. At the end of our first year, we found out we were pregnant! However, that pregnancy unfortunately ended in a miscarriage. After that loss, we decided to just live …

Our journey together began in 2006, while in high school.  We were two teenagers who fell in love and dreamt about having a large family.  It has been our dream since we were kids ourselves.  After many years of dating, we were married in 2016 and have been blessed with two children.  Being parents is our greatest blessing. A few …

When I (Laura) was 35, I froze my eggs in Chicago thinking I would have an insurance policy for the future. I had to do three rounds of IVF to get a good amount to freeze. Fast forward to 2019 when I met Ed, we were engaged in 2021, and we decided not to waste time and start our journey …

When asked as a child what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always– without hesitation– responded that I wanted to be a mom. Since childhood, I have had the opportunity to travel to six countries, live in four different states in every region of the US, graduate from two masters programs, explore my identity and ambitions, and …

My husband and I have been together since college and have been married since our mid-twenties. We made our living as actors and musicians for much of our 20s and 30s, and delayed starting a family until we felt we could take on the financial responsibility of being parents. We had no idea how difficult it was going to be …

We met in 2014 shortly after graduating from our respective colleges. We lived in numerous different cities across the States and finally found home in Chicago. We got married in 2020 and were excited to start our family with the values taught in Judaism. After a year of trying to get pregnant without success, we chose to pursue fertility treatment. …

Jackie and Isaac met when we were in third grade at their synagogue. We were in the same class from third grade on. Isaac asked Jackie to go to a Coldplay concert when they were juniors in high school. Despite the fact that it was very loud and we were there to listen to the music, all we did was …

Our relationship began in June 2018 through a dating app called Coffee Meets Bagel, in what we truly believe to be an act of fate. Daniel had just moved back to Chicago to be closer to his family after living eight years on the West Coast. Julie, who had been living in Chicago for many years, was getting ready to …