A family from Tennessee is making headlines this week for its beautiful, pro-life embryo adoption story.
After struggling with infertility, Tina and Benjamin Gibson decided to embark on a road less traveled in building their family.
Miraculously, both their daughters were born from frozen embryos.
Emma was born in 2017 from a 24-year-old embryo. And Molly now surpasses her genetic sister as the oldest known embryo (27 years old) to result in a birth, according to the University of Tennessee Preston Medical Library.
“We’re over the moon,” Tina told the BBC. “I still get choked up. If you would have asked me five years ago if I would have not just one girl, but two, I would have said you were crazy.”
The Gibsons worked with the National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC)—a Christian nonprofit in Knoxville that matches families with embryos for adoption.
The Gibson family has another history-making miracle to celebrate! We are so happy for them!
Posted by National Embryo Donation Center on Monday, November 30, 2020
Technically, the newest addition to the Gibson family is just 18 months younger than mom Tina. The embryo was frozen in Oct. 1992—only 18 months after her mother, Tina, now 29, was born in April 1991, the New York Post reports.
Tina now sees her story as a source of encouragement for couples in similar situations:
“I know it’s a hard choice, deciding what to do with those leftover embryos that you know you’re not going to use,” she said. “People are scared … but someone out there would be so grateful to have them. And those children will be so loved.”
The clinic staff is “thrilled” for the Gibsons, National Embryo Donation Center president Dr. Jeffrey Keenan said.
With the emergence of new technology every year, embryo adoption is swiftly becoming more readily available.
“Embryo adoption is a fantastic option for so many couples,” Keenan said. “It’s an exceptionally successful and very cost-effective option, and it’s sometimes really the only option for couples where the mother can actually experience a pregnancy and the birth of a child.”
For more information on embryo adoption, visit resource websites like thegospelcoalition.org or the NEDC. And consider partnering with Focus on the Family’s pledge to #LoveEveryHeartbeat.
This powerful #LoveEveryHeartbeat video highlights the potential in these not-yet-born babies Tina and Benjamin Gibson saw when they started their journey. Watch now.
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