For Victoria couple Jess and Mercy, the road to parenthood wasn’t a straight line — it was a winding, emotional journey that ultimately led them to something more profound than they ever imagined: a deepened partnership, a growing family and the understanding that things might work out in ways you never expected.
Starting in September 2020, Jess and Mercy embarked on their fertility journey “bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” assuming things would go smoothly. But as Jess puts it, “It turned out to be a long and winding road with a lot of ups and downs.”
A bumpy start
Like many LGBTQ2SIA+ couples, Jess and Mercy faced early challenges, particularly around accessing donor sperm and navigating fertility services that weren’t fully meeting their needs. It wasn’t until they received a referral to Olive Fertility Centre in Vancouver, a year later and connected with Dr. Al Yuzpe that things began to shift.
“Our first conversation with Dr. Yuzpe felt great,” Mercy recalls. “We knew we had finally found the right clinic to help us create our family.”
That sense of affirmation and understanding is a cornerstone of Olive Fertility’s approach. As a pioneer in inclusive fertility care, Olive has built a reputation for welcoming and expertly guiding LGBTQ2SIA+ individuals through their unique family-building journeys.
A clinic that understands
From their main Vancouver clinic to their newer location in Victoria, Olive Fertility has become a trusted ally for queer families. With advances in fertility science, including egg and sperm donation, IVF and gestational surrogacy, many pathways now exist for LGBTQ2SIA+ people to become parents.
“For couples or individuals with eggs and a uterus, getting pregnant can often be straightforward with donor sperm,” explains Dr. James Graham, clinical director at Olive Victoria. “But for those who don’t have eggs or a uterus, options like IVF with donor eggs and a gestational carrier can help make parenthood possible.”
Jess and Mercy’s path to parenthood
Originally, Jess planned to carry their baby. The couple began intrauterine insemination (IUI) treatment with optimism but after three unsuccessful cycles, they shifted to in vitro fertilization (IVF). Jess underwent hormone injections, an egg retrieval procedure and embryo fertilization using donor sperm.
“In June 2022, Jess had her first egg retrieval and we created three healthy embryos,” says Mercy. “It felt like a huge moment of hope and relief.” But heartbreak soon followed when their first embryo transfer didn’t succeed.
Understanding the toll this was taking, Mercy decided to go through an egg retrieval herself. Jess then tried again — this time with one of Mercy’s embryos — in a process known as reciprocal IVF. That attempt also didn’t work. “It was an incredibly difficult time,” says Jess. “We needed space to heal.”
After stepping back to regroup, the couple decided Mercy would try to get pregnant. This time, Olive Fertility introduced them to endometrial receptivity analysis (ERA) — an innovative test that determines the optimal time for embryo transfer. The test revealed that Mercy’s best chance of implantation was outside the typical window, allowing the team to time the transfer perfectly.
And it worked. In January 2023, Mercy became pregnant with Jess’s embryo and on October 12, 2023, their daughter, Lennon, was born.
Full circle
Their journey didn’t end there. In August 2024, Jess and Mercy returned to Olive, now to the Victoria clinic and met with Dr. Graham and his team. In a touching full-circle moment, Jess became pregnant with one of Mercy’s embryos. Their baby boy is due on October 12, 2025, on Lennon’s second birthday.
Looking back, both Jess and Mercy recognize the profound lessons they’ve learned.
“Finding the right clinic is everything,” says Mercy. “One that understands your needs and is willing to help you achieve your goals your way.”
“And you have to accept that you can’t control everything,” adds Jess. “If our journey hadn’t unfolded the way it did, with all the heartbreak and twists, we wouldn’t have our daughter Lennon or the son we’re expecting this October. It is so magical that we are expecting our son on the exact date, October 12th, that our daughter was born. ”
A message of hope
Jess and Mercy’s story is one of resilience, love and the possibilities that open up when medical expertise and compassionate care come together. For LGBTQ2SIA+ individuals and couples considering family building, their journey offers both inspiration and reassurance.
At Olive Fertility, the commitment is clear: to provide inclusive, personalized care that reflects the diverse paths to parenthood. Whether it’s reciprocal IVF, donor conception or gestational surrogacy, Olive combines leading-edge science with an affirming, human approach.
As Dr. Graham puts it, “We’re here to help make the dream of having a family come true, however that looks for you.”
To learn more about LGBTQ2SIA+ fertility services at Olive Fertility Centre, visit olivefertility.com or connect with their Vancouver or Victoria clinics for a consultation.
