This weekend, CFC’s staff packed up and headed East.Angie Campeau, and her family travelled from London, Ontario, while Stephanie Sluys, Sylvie Beaulieu and I jumped on the train in Cobourg.
We had planned a conference in Montreal several months ago, hosting lawyers from Quebec, Ontario, as wells presentations from Intended parents, and our own Angie Campeau, sharing her experience as a Gestational carrier.
As we were planning the conference, we received great news from Doreen Brown.She called to tell me that she had one her court challenge, which meant that Surrogacy was now possible in Quebec.For us at CFC, with 20% of our current roster of clients being from Montreal, this was amazing news!!! Now intended parents would have the opportunity to have a surrogate located close to them.For many of our clients, they are currently travelling a minimum of two hours to attend Dr’s appointments, ultrasounds, and of course the birth.This will mean so very much to those who are wanting a close relationship with their carrier.
Doreen Brown shared this great news with the audience, talking about how long this case was in the making, and what this win means for third party reproductive technology in Quebec.
There were many take aways for me at this event, from hearing the intended parents share their stories, to listening to the lawyers from both Quebec, and Ontario talk about the complexities of the process, but for me it was these two simple words that really stuck out- Femme Porteuse.
Femme Porteuse simply means this: Woman carrier, as opposed to Surrogate Mother.Doreen Brown explained that by legal definition, a woman who delivers a child is not necessarily the mother of that child, and that the intended Mother, is in fact the mother of the child.This stuck with me for many reasons.One, because as a mother I identify with the word Mother, however having been a gestational carrier, I can disconnect from the term “mother” in those instances.Im wonder what’s next in terms of language around Surrogacy?? It went from birth mother, to surrogate, to gestational carrier, and from mere porteuse to femme porteuse.What does this mean for our “two dad” families? Is it easier for them to identify with a Carrier, as the “mother” of their child, or the egg donor, as the “mother” ?
I imagine this next week will be full of lots of office chatter on this, as we figure out what makes most sense in terms of language around this- We want to ensure that we are respectful of all participating in this process, always.
CFC will be hosting several conferences this Summer, and we look forward to meeting you there!
For further information on upcoming conferences, or to schedule a free consultation, please email us at *** OR by calling *** *** ***
Montreal Surrogacy
