Girl Tracks Down Her Biological Father, And Then Mom Makes An Unsuspected Move

Jessica Share had her children using a sperm donor and was happy not knowing too much about the man behind the sample. All too soon, though, her daughter Alice grew up — and made the big decision to track down her biological father. And when Alice actually found him, Jessica made a dramatic and unexpected move... changing their family forever.

Family planning

Jessica and her long-term partner Melanie had always known they’d wanted children. So when the time felt right, they considered their options. "Ever since we'd met we had dreamed about having kids together. We decided on four, and together we chose their names," Jessica shared in an article on the BBC website. "The next step was more difficult."

Potential donors

"My girlfriend suggested her brother-in-law could help. He was receptive, but I took a gay and lesbian legal rights course offered by the college of law at my university and quickly gave up on the idea of a known donor," Jessica said. Even though it was 2005, the courts were often unsupportive of gay couples. 

A matter of rights

If Jessica and her partner would have used a known sperm donor, like her brother, he could've potentially taken their children. "Courts had been known to give them custody rights, calling their gift of sperm an act of parenting. When birth moms died, children were removed from their homes to be placed with men they barely knew," Jessica revealed.

Perfect match

To avoid a possible legal nightmare, the couple decided to go down the route of using a sperm bank instead. "Luckily, we discovered a sperm bank that shipped right to our home," Jessica said. After a lengthy selection process, Jessica and her partner found an anonymous donor who seemed to be a perfect match.