i am so excited to be serving as this year’s chairperson for the tri-state walk of hope. i hope you will consider joining our team or making a donation. i wanted to share why i will be walking:
When my husband Ralph and I realized it was unlikely we would be able to build our family on our own, I found myself focusing on all the things infertility was robbing us of: privacy, confidence in our bodies, control, intimacy, money and hope. Plans were put on hold or cancelled as our lives revolved around the calendar and medication schedules from our doctors. Sick days being saved for maternity leave instead were used for testing and procedures. Our savings dwindled. I started pulling back from other relationships as our friends announced their pregnancies and births. I lost faith in my ability to make it through our treatments, both mentally and physically.
And then, I found RESOLVE. I know it sounds like a cliché, but it changed my life and my relationship with my infertility.
In my peer-led support group, I found support and understanding from others who had been there and done that. I found a strength I never knew I had, and that I desperately needed to continue on the journey to build our family.
During National Infertility Awareness Week, I found hope as I saw awareness of infertility and its treatments growing. I found pride as I heard others who had previously remained silent about their struggles speak out and share their stories.
At Advocacy Day, I found my voice as I asked our government to help not just our family, but for the 1 in 8 couples struggling with infertility. I found passionate individuals who had traveled from around the country to speak out about the need for access to treatments and financial relief.
And at last year’s first Tri-State Walk of Hope, I found a community. Over 300 people came out to bring awareness to others about infertility, and to raise over $60,000 to ensure that RESOLVE can continue its important work improving the lives of those living with infertility through advocacy, education, and awareness. I found joy as together we walked that mile, to ensure that no one with infertility has to walk alone.