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 hand of the other, and yet, somehow, we knew that we were someday meant to be three to be complete.

We had often daydreamed about a future with children, “when the time was right.” After successfully leaning on our love to navigate life’s challenges, we decided it was time to pursue making a family. However, our original family dream had been changed. One of our health struggles included a back surgery in 2020, which ultimately led to complications that left us unable to conceive naturally. We grieved this loss for some time, but we were not willing to give up on our hopes for lake house vacations, backyard BBQs, and an endless future filled with “Dad jokes.”

After some hopeful encouragement from doctors, we are now pursuing interuterine insemination (IUI) with the help of specialists at the Institute for Human Reproduction (IHR). Many of the incurred costs from this process are not fully covered by insurance, and the opportunity to be selected by the Chicago Coalition for Family Building has been such a blessing to help us continue in this process.

Our road to building a family has not been quite what we expected, but we are grateful for this second chance to achieve our dreams.

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