Episode 163: From the Start – Stephanie Levich

Stephanie is the Founder & President of Family Match Consulting–a world-renowned fertility consulting firm specializing in finding egg donors, sperm donors, and surrogates for clients. Stephanie, the first of her parent’s three adopted children, long carried the desire to help other hopeful parents start their families; a call that intensified when she found herself in the throes of infertility. Ultimately, it was IVF that helped Stephanie achieve her dream of becoming a mother to two children. With more than 20 years of experience in the industry she’s so passionate about, Stephanie has given the gift of family to more than 3,000 parents who were struggling with infertility themselves. Because of her personal background and decades-long experience working in the field, parents often ask Stephanie for guidance when talking to their children about their birth stories. Born from the desire to give parents the tools to talk to their children about the many ways families can be made, Stephanie teamed up with Alana Weiss, her best friend of almost 25 years and a mother through IVF, to co-author the children’s book, “From the Start: A Book About Love and Making Families.” From the Start is an inclusive and heartfelt love letter to children born through the help of adoption or fertility treatments such as IVF, sperm/egg donation, or surrogacy. Through age-appropriate language and sweet rhyming prose, Levich and Weiss weave together themes of hope and gratitude to highlight the special roles fertility doctors, donors, surrogates, and adoption play in helping hopeful parents start or grow their families. Listen as Stephanie discusses with Ellen and Jenn: • When her mom was 13, an infection lead to a complete hysterectomy. • Her positive experience being adopted. • Going to school to be a theater major and finding her path to becoming a surrogacy expert. • Started her own agency and working with celebrities (cue some name-dropping!) • Finding genetic relatives. • Co-Authoring a book that speaks to all types of ways children can come into the world, “From the Start: A Book About Love and Making Families.” • The heartfelt thank you’s from the families she works with. Want to share your story or ask a question? Call and leave us a message on our hotline: 303-997-1903. Learn more about our podcast: https://iwanttoputababyinyou.com/ Learn more about Family Match Consulting: https://www.familymatchconsulting.com/ Learn more about our surrogacy agencies: https://www.brightfuturesfamilies.com/ Learn more about the book Stephanie wrote: https://www.amazon.com/Start-Book-About-Making-Families/dp/1632995336 Get your IWTPABIY merch here! https://iwanttoputababyinyou.com/merch Learn more about Ellen’s law firm: http://trachmanlawcenter.com/