The Gift of Hope

The Gift of Hope 2010 has been awarded to Robin & Dion Carter of Ville Platte, LA! Click HERE to read about this special couple's struggles with infertility and their renewed hope at starting their family.

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The GIFT of HOPE is offered each spring through the generosity of Dr. John Storment with Fertility & Women’s Health Center of Louisiana, Women’s & Children’s Hospital, and Sheridan Healthcare. Since 2006, there have been six South Louisiana couples chosen for the GIFT of HOPE and three babies have been born as a result.

Hope Elizabeth Hughes, born April 2007 to Laura & Terry Hughes, GOH 2006 recipients

"We started the program as a way to help local couples undergo IVF who could not otherwise afford it," said Amelie Storment, the wife of Dr. Storment and the creator and driving force behind the program.

"Back in 2005, we had been approached by a national foundation that was doing a similar program. Their program awarded an IVF cycle to a deserving couple somewhere in the U.S. and then they would fly them to participating donating clinics around the country to receive treatment. We liked the idea, but following Hurricane Katrina, we knew that there were just as many deserving couples right here in our area who could use this service."

Out of this simple idea, the Gift of Hope program was born.

Grace-Ann McCleery, born April 2009 to Beth and Eric McCleery, GOH 2007 recipients

Created to ease the high costs, both financially and emotionally, of in vitro fertilization (IVF), the GIFT of HOPE program awards infertility treatments to one couple each year who demonstrates both financial and medical needs for the procedure. Donors include John M. Storment, M.D., a board certified reproductive endocrinologist with Fertility & Women’s Health Center of Louisiana, Women’s & Children’s Hospital in Lafayette, LA, and Sheridan Healthcare, anesthesia providers.

Jagger Dean Bourque, born October 2009 to Rachel & Tony Bourque, GOH 2008 recipients

The combined value of donated services to receive the GIFT of  HOPE is estimated at $10,000 to $15,000. According to Resolve, the National Infertility Association, only a quarter of healthcare insurers offer coverage for infertility care. As a result, as many as 50 percent of American couples who fail to conceive do not seek treatment due to financial reasons.

John Storment M.D. with Fertility & Women’s Health Center of Louisiana offers comprehensive treatment of infertility, including Assistant Reproductive Technologies and In Vitro Fertilization, treatment of multiple pregnancy loss, endometriosis, and all other reproductive endocrine disorders, routine gynecologic care and menopause management. 

Women’s & Children’s Hospital offers quality cost-effective healthcare services for the women and children of Acadiana.

Sheridan Healthcare offers the finest, most consistent teams of physicians and healthcare specialists to hospitals, ambulatory surgical facilities and healthcare providers.

Eligibility for GIFT of HOPE requires that couples:

• Earn less than $80,000 per year
• Have no insurance coverage for infertility
• Be tax-paying residents of Louisiana
• Have a documented medical need for in vitro fertilization
• Have insurance coverage for prenatal care
• Can describe in their own words the compelling nature of their need for fertility treatment.

Want to read about past recipients of the Gift of Hope? Click on the links below:

• Gift of Hope 2006 - Laura & Terry Hughes, Lafayette, LA
• Gift of Hope 2007 - Beth & Eric McCleery, Jennings, LA, and Bridget & Ryan Baudoin, Breaux Bridge, LA
• Gift of Hope 2008 - Rachel & Tony Bourque, Lake Charles, LA
• Gift of Hope 2009 - Michele & Kip Trahan, Kaplan, LA and Jesse & Shane Cayce, Lafayette, LA
• Gift of Hope 2010 - Robin & Dion Carter, Ville Platte, LA

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