LONGWOOD | When Jo Ann Elder struggled to conceive in the 1980s, it was hard to find support or learn Church teaching on artificial reproductive technology. Today she’s partnering with the Diocese of Orlando to launch a 10-week program to help women spiritually heal from battling infertility.
Elder is the family life coordinator at Nativity Parish. Because of her own journey of infertility and encounters with other married couples, she reached out to Edna Cedano, diocesan Marriage and Family Ministry coordinator.
“Given that the World Health Organization estimates that 1 in 6 people worldwide are affected by infertility, it became clear that many couples in our diocese are navigating this difficult journey with minimal support,” Cedano said.
The “Arise” program is one of two pilot programs in the United States. Cedano hopes to expand the initiative to additional parishes “so women know they are not alone and are supported by the Church on their journey,” she said.
Joining forces with Springs in the Desert, a Catholic infertility organization providing support for couples, “Arise” will begin Oct. 3 at Nativity Parish. Elder will facilitate a group of 12 women along with co-facilitator Suze Madigan, who also journeyed through infertility. Elder explains, the group is not resource-based, but “is a support group to heal your soul, to heal your relationship with God.”
She noted when one struggles to conceive, many questions and emotions surface. Many women grow up thinking they will get married and have a family. When that doesn’t happen, it’s hard to understand why. Like any other loss, she explained one can grieve for decades. She said the focus of the group is, “to surround these women with love and support and show them that God has a plan for their life, that there is hope.”
Looking back, her journey ultimately led to her and her husband, David, to adopt four children and foster 27 more.
“I’m kind of mad we spent 10 years just anxious and not living our best life at the time,” she remembered. “There were times when I didn’t even change jobs because I was afraid I was going to get pregnant in the next six months. I didn’t have the career path I could have had. We didn’t take vacations we could have because we were like Sarah and Abraham. We were going to force this to happen somehow instead of trusting in God’s plan for our life.”
She hopes participants can “let go and let God,” and understand “this is a chapter in their life; it does not define them.”
“Our objective is to bring them closer to God and help them heal and bring hope for the future,” she added.
Deacon David Baker, also from Nativity Parish, will serve as the group’s spiritual advisor.
Nativity’s pastor, Father David Scotchie is pleased the parish offers New infertility support ministry offered in diocese accompaniment.
“I have met a number of couples who desperately wanted children,” he said. “Some went on to become pregnant thanks to Natural Family Planning. Some had tried the painful and expensive route of invitro fertilization, not knowing it was contrary to Church teaching. I hope Springs in the Desert will help husbands and wives bear the cross of infertility. They are not alone. There is strength in numbers.
For more information contact Jo Ann Elder at Nativity Parish, 407- 322-3961 or Edna Cedano, 407- 246-4930. Registration is required as availability is limited. Click here.
By Glenda Meekins of the Florida Catholic staff, September 26, 2024