Emily Jordan was devastated to hear that she had cervical cancer when she was 29-years-old. She and her husband, Mike Jordan, had been trying for a baby and now all of their chances vanished. The news only got worse when her doctor told her she was pregnant right before her radical hysterectomy.
It was a decision to either save the unborn baby’s life, or proceed with the surgery and save Emily’s.
With the success of the surgery meant infertility for Emily. She had all but given up hope on ever having children until her mother, Cindy Reutzel, surprised her with a bold solution.
After hearing that the doctors saved Emily’s Ovaries, Cindy offered to become the surrogate mother of her own grandchild.
Emily and Mike were against the idea at first, thinking that Cindy’s age would be too much of an issue, among other things. However, after much debate, the two decided to take Cindy up on her offer.
In 2012, in a downtown Chicago hospital, Cindy gave birth to Elle Cynthia Jordan, just days after Emily’s 32nd birthday.
To Cindy, this was the greatest gift she could give her own daughter and it’s one she would be willing to do again if given the chance. “When I watch both of them hold that baby and look into her face, it’s like everything I could have imagined wanting for them – better than I could have imagined” she added.
