EH Attends Ottawa’s Capital Pride Festival

This past August, we were honoured to be a part of the Capital Pride festivities which take place in Ottawa each year. Egg Helpers is the sister company to Canadian Fertility Consulting, and both are pro-LGBTQ organization, and many of our clients identify as such. Egg Helpers and Canadian Fertility Consulting's Diversity Liaison, Kimberly Mc-Arthur Jackson, was in attendance to share her experience as a surrogate, offer information about the surrogacy process to potential surrogates and Intended Parents, and apply some fun and colourful temporary tattoos to anyone who visited the booth.

As Egg Helper's Diversity Liason, Kim is our go-to person for any questions or concerns regarding diversity and inclusivity within the company. Kim helps us ensure that no matter a person's race, gender, religion, or sexuality we are inclusive of all people who may exist within marginalized communities. Kim and her daughter Emma (CFC's Intended Parent Admissions Specialist) were overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support they received from the visitors to the booth.

They heard from couples who had never heard about surrogacy before and couldn't believe this option existed in Canada for when they're ready to create their future family. Women who were mothers themselves came by and were excited by the potential of becoming a surrogate, and younger women who aren't yet eligible for surrogacy were amazed when they found out they could still help an LGBTQ couple in need through the act of egg donation by joining Egg Helpers.

"A lot of people don't seem to have easy access to information about egg donation and surrogacy, so it was really awesome to see people's faces light up when they heard there was a way for them to help," Kim explained.

Both Kim and Emma had a wonderful time interacting with festival-goers and happily shared our custom-designed temporary tattoos with those who visited the booth. As a three-time surrogate herself, Kim was able to share her first-hand experience with others about what the surrogacy process is like: "Almost everyone that visited our booth responded positively to egg donation and surrogacy. Many had never even heard of it before, or knew that it existed within Canada, so being a part of Capital Pride is an excellent outreach opportunity for Egg Helpers and Canadian Fertility Consulting, and a great way to inspire and educate others about what family building options exist and how women can give back to their community in such a life-changing way," Kim describes.