At the age of 61, she gives birth to her own granddaughter, acting as a surrogate mother for her gay son

by Alison Forde

July 03, 2021

At the age of 61, she gives birth to her own granddaughter, acting as a surrogate mother for her gay son
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Family is one of the most important things that can exist in the life of a human being. We are born as fruits of the love between a mother and a father, we grow up with them, it's our parents who take care of us in the first years of life, give us food, watch over us, educate us to be good, respectful children to be taken as an example. In a nutshell, Mom and Dad would do anything to see us do and be our best, and we would do anything to help our family in return ...

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The Durt Family

The Durt Family

This is the story of a very particular family, which certainly generated a lot of talk about itself, for better or for worse. Matt Durst is a guy who has always wanted to be a dad with his partner Elliot; obviously, for a couple of men, the choices are limited: either they would have to start the process for adoption, or they would have embark on the path of surrogacy.

However, Matt could not have imagined that his mother, Cecile Eledge, at the age of 61, would have offered to carry in her womb the fruit of the love between Matt and Elliot, born from the union between an egg from Elliot's sister and sperm from Matt; the woman would only carry her grandson in her womb for nine months ...

 

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Thus, Cecile became, in 2019, one of the oldest mothers in the United States to give birth to a child, and what an extraordinary child: she is a girl and her name is Uma, the fruit of the love between these two men who tried to put aside all the prejudices about surrogacy and gay parenting to bring their natural daughter into the world.

But not all was a bed of roses; Matt said: "I didn't want to be seen as a really reckless and negligent person with the only mom we had left, as Elliot's mother passed away before our daughter was born. I didn't know that a woman in a post-menopausal phase could still carry a baby. An incredible story, isn't it?"

Matt and Elliot's experience has also swept away some stereotypes related to gay couples, which it seems that contemporary society accepts only if they decide to adopt a child and not if they conceive in other ways; moreover, Matt and his partner were really worried that his daughter Uma would lack a mother figure and that the two of them, as fathers, would not be able to fulfill this role. 

Elliot said: "I was terribly afraid of not having this internal maternal magic that is so important to love and nurture a little being who is already so sentient. Then she came into the world and I held her for the first time, and I heard her cry for the first time and it was a truly cosmic experience. I knew we were going to make it!"

Now Matt, Elliot and Uma form a perfect family, in spite of the many prejudices they have had to face during this very delicate journey. And all thanks not only to the availability of Elliot's sister, but above all to Cecile, who at the age of 61 offered herself with all her heart to carry in her womb the fruit of the love of her son and of his life partner. 

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