Our Vision
Donor Conception Canada’s vision is a Canada where donor conception is a positively accepted way to build a family, and honours the rights of all involved, especially people who are donor conceived. DCC works to create this vision, primarily by hosting support group conversations.
Our Mission
DCC’s mission is to support Canadians building families through donor conception. We help each other as we: Talk. Support. Learn.
In conversation, together we…
- Build a supportive and inclusive community
- Share and learn from each other’s experiences
- Encourage openness with our children regarding their conception
- Advocate to and educate the public
Our Community
DCC’s work touches those who are considering or who have used donor conception, people who are donor conceived, other family members, and gamete donors. We partner with and advise counselors, fertility practitioners, and governing bodies. DCC supports primarily intended parents, recipient parents, and their children, but looks to address all stakeholders in the donor conception journey.
Our Strategy
DCC’s 3yr strategy sets out our goals and projects for the next three years. Please follow this link: Strategy (Final) – 3yr – Donor Conception Canada – June 28, 2020
Our Connections
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For news, views, and frequent updates, please like our Facebook page!
Our History
Donor Conception Canada started in 1997. Jean Haase, a social worker with The Fertility Clinic at London Health Sciences Centre, convened a support group to foster conversations between parents that used Donor Insemination (DI) to create their families.
In addition to the preparatory counselling and education patients experienced at that time in the fertility program, patients often expressed a need for ongoing support after the birth of a child. Jean felt peer-support would prove particularly important given the secrecy and stigma historically associated with donor conception.
As is frequently the case when someone sees a need, there were folks who felt no-one would participate. Undeterred, Jean contacted participants in the hospital’s fertility program. That first meeting packed the room. People do want to talk with one another about the unfamiliar way in which they’d built their families!
Drawing from that successful start, Jean organized the Southwestern Ontario Donor Conception Support Network (SODCN) which convened twice-yearly support meetings where attendees could share and learn from each other’s experiences.
By facilitating mutual contact between families, support groups helped to reduce stigma and provide the basis for a healthier long-term adjustment to donor conception for both parents and children.
Meetings often included guest speakers, ranging from donors, donor-conceived adults, parents, and policy experts involved in the development of regulations that have implications for donor conception.
In 2010, Jean retired from active service with The Fertility Clinic. One of her retirement goals was to transition the support group to parent leadership. Jean and Vince worked together to ensure the supportive work continued.
This started a period of expansion. We launched a web-page, a Facebook page, and formalized meeting registration via e-mail lists. The program expanded from twice-yearly meetings in London to include twice-yearly meetings in Toronto, and a summer picnic. Vince represented (and continues to represent) the work, meeting with counselors, legislators, regulators, and industry professionals.
In April 2020, the name Donor Conception Canada was chosen and we incorporated as a not-for-profit organization. The Board developed our first 3 year strategy. And it set out a program of support meetings to help even more people as they experience their donor conception journey.
Today, Donor Conception Canada is led by:
- Lara Descartes, Secretary. Lara Descartes (PhD) has been a university professor in the field of Family Studies and Human Development for over 20 years. She has been a member and Board Member of Donor Conception Canada since its inception and previously was a member of the Southwestern Ontario Donor Conception Network. Lara is the proud and happy mother of one donor-conceived young adult.
- Mary Howlett-Nero. Mary Howlett Nero (MSW) retired in 2024 after working as a social worker for over 30 years. She was an Approved Adoption Practitioner for 27 years and was the Director of the Embryo Donor/Recipient Program at Beginnings Family Services for 14 years. She is a past Chair of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society’s Counselling Special Interest Group and is proud to be a board member with Donor Conception Canada. Mary is also delighted to be the grandmother to two donor conceived children.
- Joshua Levy. Joshua Levy is an award-winning author. He previously served on the board of Furniture Bank and played an important role in founding and growing Make-A-Wish Foundation Quebec. He is the proud father of a donor-conveived daughter. More information about Joshua can be found at www.joshualevy.net.
- Vince Londini, Chair. Vince Londini is an infertile man and Dad to 3 donor conceived people via sperm donor. In 2004, while preparing for the birth of their first child, Vince and his wife joined a support group hosted by Counsellor Jean Haase at London Health Sciences Centre. The experience changed the course of their journey and helped them both to heal and to focus on helping their children take ownership of their donor conception journey. When Jean retired in 2010, Vince volunteered to keep the group running and the rest is, well, the history described above! Vince volunteers as a Patient Partner at OMEGA Fertility. Vince and Lori are available to converse with intended parents, parents, and anyone whose life is touched by donor conception. More information about Vince can be found at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincelondini/.
- Dara Roth Edney. Dara Roth Edney (MSW, RSW) has been a social worker/psychotherapist since 2000, and is the founder and Clinical Director of Informed Fertility, a group counselling practice focused on family building and assisted reproduction. Throughout her career, Dara has provided support to thousands of Intended Parents, conducted assessments for countless donors and surrogates, guided people through loss, pregnancy and parenting, and counselled late discovery donor conceived adults. She is Past Chair of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society’s Counselling Special Interest Group, developed and teaches a fertility counselling course at Wilfred Laurier University’s Faculty of Social Work Professional Development Program, is involved in industry research and advocacy, and is proud to be a board member of Donor Conception Canada. Dara was also an infertility patient for many years herself and is now a mother through surrogacy. More information about Dara can be found at: https://www.informedfertility.ca.
- Luke Wedel, Treasurer. Luke brings accounting education and experience to the team.