Parents Finally Adopt Their Biological Twins After 2-Years Long Legal Battle | “I’m Feeling Very Hopeful”

It's been a long journey for Tammy and Jordan Myers. The lengthy legal battle to be the parents of their own biological kids has finally come to an end. It took two whole years for the Myers to get parental rights to their own kids. The kids were born to a surrogate due to an old Michigan Law. Tammy turned to Lauren Vermilye and her husband Jonathan for surrogacy after a cancer diagnosis in 2015 revealed that it would be dangerous for Tammy to carry children again.  

Twins Eames and Ellison were born on January 11, 2021, via the gestational carrier. Despite Eames and Ellison being Tammy and Jordan's children biologically, they had to adopt them. And now they finally have. "Words cannot express how excited we are to put this adoption process behind us," Tammy, 41, of Grand Rapids told PEOPLE. "This ongoing whirlwind has become our normal, and this craziness has all led to this special moment," she added. "The fight's not over with," Jordan added. "It's over with from our case's standpoint, but hopefully we'll eventually get these bills put in place where things will change for the better."

Due to Michigan's strict laws, the Vermilyes were listed as the parents of twins Eames and Ellison until Thursday. “It kind of sucked the joy out of it for a while,” said Tammy, according to FOX 17. “It didn’t allow us to feel the elation that we should’ve felt so it’s almost like we’ve been stuck in this purgatory for the last 23 months.”

The law prevented the Myers from being seen as the babies' parents. “The problem with the law is that there’s no process to make that happen prior to the birth,” said Melissa Neckers, the Myers’ attorney. “To finally have them listed as the legal parents is enormous, but it’s also frustrating that we had to get to this point.” The family is now working with state legislators to help sort out pending bills that would help other people who've been in a similar distressing situation. “Adoption wasn’t set up for this type of situation, it was set up for kids who don’t have parents, or their parents can’t take care of them,” said Neckers. “This is a band-aid. We need to change the law.”

The Myers who already have a daughter Corryn, now 10, had always yearned to grow their family. After years of struggling, they are now recognized as one big happy bunch! "It's a great day: We are finally being recognized as our biological twins' legal parents, and I'm feeling very hopeful that we will see a change to this crazy, outdated Michigan law," Tammy said.

"Although this journey has been traumatic and long, it has also been pretty amazing at the same time," Tammy said. "With support coming from people around the globe, it's also hard not to feel that every single aspect of this experience was part of a much bigger plan—every moment representing another puzzle piece that has fallen into place. The big picture is finally clear, and my heart is so full."

They hope no other Michigan parent has to suffer what they have over the past two years. "Michigan is one of the only states with a law so restrictive that it forces intended parents to adopt their own children born via surrogacy," Michigan Senator Winnie Brinks has said, according to the Michigan House Democrats. "It is well past time that our laws reflect the advances in assisted reproductive technology that allow Michiganders to have the freedom of fulfilling their dreams of becoming parents and growing their families through surrogacy."

References:

https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/kent/update-family-finally-able-to-adopt-their-own-biological-children

https://housedems.com/democrats-working-to-update-surrogacy-laws-keep-families-together/

https://people.com/human-interest/mich-parents-officially-adopt-their-biological-children-after-legal-battle/

Cover Image Source: YouTube | MLive