Omaha: In another surprising event, a 61-year-old woman willingly became a surrogate mother for her gay son and has successfully given birth to her own granddaughter last week.
The mother Cecile Eledge gave birth to a healthy baby of nearly 6-pound baby at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. The gay couple has named the newborn as Uma Louise Dougherty-Eledge.
According to sources, Matthew Eledge, and his husband, Elliot Dougherty decided to expand their family, Dougherty’s sister, Lea Yribe offered to donate her eggs and the search for a surrogate mother begun for the family.
Since the gay couple were skeptical and not confident about navigating in vitro fertilization as gay men they wanted a better solution.
“Nebraska is a bit more conservative, and we were hesitant to go into agencies, and had a bit of fear that maybe some things would hold us back being a gay couple,” Matthew Eledge said and that is when Cecile offered to be their surrogate mother to their daughter.
“I just never hesitated,” she said. “I was just so excited to be able to be part of this adventure with them. … It was just unconditional love.”
When Cecile discussed with Mathew he says “I put my foot in my mouth,” and recalled “I told her, ‘Mom, you’re postmenopausal. … You can’t do that, right?’”
With doctors giving Cecile a go-ahead the whole family planned for the pregnancy.
“It was really exciting to know that my mom and dad and whole ancestry and family lineage were going to be a part of her,” Dougherty said.