Yonatan and Susan met in the San Francisco Bay Area at an event called “Jews and Brews.” We quickly realized we shared not only interests but also core values: a commitment to Jewish life, social justice, and a strong desire for children. When we determined that we might need assistance conceiving, we began a multi-year effort involving significant medical challenges. Early on, Yonatan tested positive for the BRCA mutation. This led us to pursue IVF with PGT-M testing to screen our embryos. Unfortunately, despite four egg retrievals and rounds of PGT, we were left with only one viable embryo to transfer, which did not result in a successful pregnancy. We have since matched with an egg donor, which offers us a much better chance at success.

The last few years have been difficult in ways we could not have imagined, yet we remain deeply committed to realizing our dream of becoming parents. We look forward to the everyday joy of raising our child (or children) within the loving structure of a Jewish home, surrounded by the rich traditions and supportive network we have found here in Chicago. We envision raising confident, empathetic, and resilient individuals who will grow up to be active, contributing members of their community. Despite the setbacks we have encountered, we are grateful for the opportunity that this grant provides for us to continue our journey and hopeful that we will soon be able to bring home our first child.

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