Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

"Educate the child. Raise him or her without biases of any kind. Teach him or her to trust in others but to rely on self. Instill in him or her a sense of humor and the ability to enjoy life."

Penned on a sperm bank intake form, these words of advice from Donor 1058 to the future recipients of his donations became a parental motto for one particular recipient, Wendy Kramer, who would go on to found the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR). With almost 75,000 members in 105 countries, the DSR is the world's largest platform for sperm, egg, and embryo donors, donor-conceived children and adults, and their parents to connect and share information through mutual-consent contact. In her role with the DSR, Wendy has become a leading advocate for donor families and for reformation of the modern profit-driven donor conception industry.

This is the story of Wendy's journey as the mother of a donor-conceived profoundly gifted child, Ryan, whose relentless curiosity--under the tenacious guidance and support of his mother--eventually led to his reunion against all odds not only with his biological father, Donor 1058, but also with 19 of his donor-conceived half-siblings scattered across the continent. Their experience--like the experience of so many of the Donor Sibling Registry's members--illustrates how this brave new world of donor conception is stretching our understanding of the evolving nature and possibilities of "family." This memoir, written with warmth and humor by Wendy herself, reminds us with story after story that there are few things more fundamental than the human need to know where we come from, nor more beautiful than the triumph of truth over shame.

"1136156422"
Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

"Educate the child. Raise him or her without biases of any kind. Teach him or her to trust in others but to rely on self. Instill in him or her a sense of humor and the ability to enjoy life."

Penned on a sperm bank intake form, these words of advice from Donor 1058 to the future recipients of his donations became a parental motto for one particular recipient, Wendy Kramer, who would go on to found the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR). With almost 75,000 members in 105 countries, the DSR is the world's largest platform for sperm, egg, and embryo donors, donor-conceived children and adults, and their parents to connect and share information through mutual-consent contact. In her role with the DSR, Wendy has become a leading advocate for donor families and for reformation of the modern profit-driven donor conception industry.

This is the story of Wendy's journey as the mother of a donor-conceived profoundly gifted child, Ryan, whose relentless curiosity--under the tenacious guidance and support of his mother--eventually led to his reunion against all odds not only with his biological father, Donor 1058, but also with 19 of his donor-conceived half-siblings scattered across the continent. Their experience--like the experience of so many of the Donor Sibling Registry's members--illustrates how this brave new world of donor conception is stretching our understanding of the evolving nature and possibilities of "family." This memoir, written with warmth and humor by Wendy herself, reminds us with story after story that there are few things more fundamental than the human need to know where we come from, nor more beautiful than the triumph of truth over shame.

9.99 In Stock
Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

by Wendy Kramer
Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

Donor Family Matters: My Story of Raising a Profoundly Gifted Donor-Conceived Child, Redefining Family, and Building the Donor Sibling Registry

by Wendy Kramer

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$9.99 
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Overview

"Educate the child. Raise him or her without biases of any kind. Teach him or her to trust in others but to rely on self. Instill in him or her a sense of humor and the ability to enjoy life."

Penned on a sperm bank intake form, these words of advice from Donor 1058 to the future recipients of his donations became a parental motto for one particular recipient, Wendy Kramer, who would go on to found the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR). With almost 75,000 members in 105 countries, the DSR is the world's largest platform for sperm, egg, and embryo donors, donor-conceived children and adults, and their parents to connect and share information through mutual-consent contact. In her role with the DSR, Wendy has become a leading advocate for donor families and for reformation of the modern profit-driven donor conception industry.

This is the story of Wendy's journey as the mother of a donor-conceived profoundly gifted child, Ryan, whose relentless curiosity--under the tenacious guidance and support of his mother--eventually led to his reunion against all odds not only with his biological father, Donor 1058, but also with 19 of his donor-conceived half-siblings scattered across the continent. Their experience--like the experience of so many of the Donor Sibling Registry's members--illustrates how this brave new world of donor conception is stretching our understanding of the evolving nature and possibilities of "family." This memoir, written with warmth and humor by Wendy herself, reminds us with story after story that there are few things more fundamental than the human need to know where we come from, nor more beautiful than the triumph of truth over shame.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780578633374
Publisher: Donor Sibling Registry
Publication date: 01/30/2020
Pages: 100
Sales rank: 508,510
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.24(d)

About the Author

Wendy Kramer has co-authored many published papers on donor conception, has reviewed abstracts for the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, and has also been a peer reviewer for the journals Human Reproduction, Reproductive BioMedicine Online, and the Journal of Comparative Effectiveness Research. She was Associate Producer on the Style Network's 2011 Emmy-nominated show Sperm Donor and on MTV News & Docs 2013 docu-series Generation Cryo. Wendy and her son Ryan have appeared on 60 Minutes, Oprah, Good Morning America, and many other news shows and publications. Wendy is co-author of the book Finding Our Families: A First-of-Its-Kind Book for Donor-Conceived People and Their Families and author of the children's book Your Family: A Donor Kid's Story. Wendy holds a B.A. from Long Island University.

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1: Pick Me

Chapter 2: Meeting Ryan

Chapter 3: Starting Over

Chapter 4: Boy Wonder

Chapter 5: Find Me

Chapter 6: Oprah Calls

Chapter 7: Please Be Kind

Chapter 8: Finding Peace by Connecting the Pieces

Chapter 9: Expanding Family

Chapter 10: Empty Nest and the DSR

Chapter 11: The Roaring Twenties

Chapter 12: Thanks for the Kid

Chapter 13: Portland

Chapter 14: Continuing to Redefine Family

Epilogue

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