Rachel and Joe met through JDate in 2013 and immediately fell in love. A year later they were engaged and in 2015 they got married! In 2017, they were ready to begin having children. Rachel went off of birth control and could not ovulate on her own. After waiting about 7 months, the couple saw a fertility specialist who diagnosed Rachel with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). The couple went through a cycle of IVF and got pregnant immediately. They welcomed their first son, Jeremy, in April 2019!

When Jeremy turned one, Rachel began fertility treatments again. Her treatment schedule was put on hold due to Covid. Once elective surgeries were allowed, her treatment resumed only to find she had three polyps and needed to have a hysteroscopy to have them removed. The couple had their embryos genetically tested (PGT-A) to increase their chances of success.

After Rachel’s first frozen embryo transfer, she miscarried. After the second frozen embryo transfer, she sadly miscarried again. The couple decided to do a mock cycle/Endometrial Receptivity Analysis to assess the best window of implantation. After this process, the third frozen embryo transfer was successful and the family welcomed their daughter, Savannah, in August 2021.

The young couple could not have become a family without the financial support received through the grant for both children. We are forever grateful!

Rachel and Joe are recipients of the Path to Parenthood Grant from the Jewish United Fund – Chicago.