Please help me fulfill my dream of fatherhood!
Hi! I'm Archie, a British trans man who's lived in LA for 17 years, and I'm on a quest to fulfill my ultimate dream of fatherhood.
Cliff notes: I’m 40 years old, and my only option now of becoming a dad is through surrogacy. Whilst I’m ready to be a dad in all ways, the only barrier for me is the cost of surrogacy here in the US where my embryos are located. Surrogacy will cost around $200k. So, as this is my final chance to make this happen, I would be eternally grateful for anyone who is able to support my journey by donating $2 each. If 100,000 people donate, my dream of becoming a dad will actually be possible!
If you’re interested in reading more about me and my journey, then please read on!
My story:
Being 40, single, and on hormones, surrogacy is my only viable option for having a baby. As I physically transitioned a lot later in life than I had hoped (more on that later), this truly is my one, only, and final chance to become the dad I always dreamt I'd be. So I hope you may be able to help support my journey of making my dreams come true.
Thank you so much for being here, and I'm now going to share more about me so you can understand how I got here. Hopefully, by the end, you'll believe that that I deserve to experience the joys of having a child.
My goal
I've made this campaign from a place of sheer hope that there may be enough kind people who will support my journey to fatherhood by contributing $2 each in the hopes it will reach 100,000 people. It's ambitious, I know, but if I can raise enough money, I will actually be able to start my surrogacy journey here in the US.
Despite being financially prepared to take on the responsibilities of being a single dad, the cost of surrogacy stands as my only barrier as, here in the US, it's really privilege of the wealthy 1%. So with your generous support of $2, ensuring my story with as many people as possible, you will make an otherwise impossibility actually possible.
About me
Now, I'd like to tell you a little about myself and how I got to the point of asking kind strangers on the internet to support my journey to fatherhood.
From my earliest memory, I always knew that I was male and just believed that, when I grew up, I'd become a husband and a father one day. Unfortunately, my body had other plans.
I do believe our childhood shapes so much of who we become as adults. As young as 3, I exhibited behaviours that were definitively not that of a little girl and was just labelled 'defiant' and 'willful'. At 5, I had a standout experience, which really formed my baseline of inner shame of who I was. It has taken a lot of hard work over many years to reprogram, and I can proudly say that today, I'm happy with who I see in the mirror. I have always remained committed to self-growth, and I also have the compassion and understanding that people come with their own set of issues and are sometimes unaware of the effect they can have on others.
My transition
It would be totally reasonable to wonder why I transitioned so late in life, so let me tell you.
In 2014 I finally shared who I was with someone close to me which, as a very private person, was incredibly hard for me. Their reaction was less than ideal; they were very disappointed, and they cried and begged me to promise that I would never do anything about it because it would upset everyone. They also knew how badly I wanted to have children one day, so they reminded me that if I did "do something about it", I could kiss that idea goodbye.
Not one to ever kowtow, given my 'defiant' and 'willful' disposition, I actually didn't 'do something about it' for the next SIX years. Having a child has always been my ultimate goal in life, almost like a calling, so just the thought of denying myself of the possibly felt too big of a risk. So if having a child meant staying silent and sacrificing my own inner contentment, then so be it.
But in 2020, it hit me (not COVID, thankfully). I DO deserve to live as my true authentic self AND be able to fulfill my dream of becoming a dad. I realized that I shouldn't have to stay silent, live with shame, and sacrifice anything just to live as myself.
So I decided to, finally, 'do something about it'. I had my top surgery (the breast decision I ever made), and even though I lost my business due to the pandemic, I still did a cycle of successful cycle of IVF. Thankfully, I now have PGT-A tested embryos ready to transfer to a surrogate.
And lastly
I've never put myself out there before and could never have imagined sharing something so personal so publicly, but this is my only shot. If there's only one thing you've learnt about me, please let it be that there is nothing I want more in this life than to be a dad. There are not enough words in the English language to explain my deep yearning to have a child of my very own and nurture, love, support, protect, educate, and give them the freedom and acceptance to become whoever they are or want to be. To me, that is what life is about.
I want to thank every person who has taken the time to read or perhaps even empathize with my story. And to those who are generous enough to support my journey and kindly share my campaign, please know that I will be forever grateful for you, literally, giving me the gift of life.
They say it takes a village to raise a child, but in my case it's going to take 100,000 generous supporters to make having a child possible for me.
Sincerely, Archie
