Our Why

A letter from our founder.

The Family Stone was all I ever wanted – five kids with unique, beautiful personalities coming home each Christmas with their families. A house full of laughter, joy, & love.

After two C-sections 15 months apart, my OB told me I would need to wait three years to try for another baby. While we waited, I had two more surgeries to remove endometriosis. When we tried to get pregnant again, I was so optimistic I bought “Mama Bear” & “Baby Bear” shirts & hid them until I saw those two pink lines.

But instead of two pink lines, another surgery. Then a few months & several single line tests later, I went to my gynecologist for severe pelvic pain. “I think you may be pregnant, so we’ll do a test & if it’s positive, we’ll schedule surgery to terminate.” All my dreams came true & shattered in one sentence.

I now know the doctor was concerned it was an ectopic pregnancy that was causing pain & the inflamed fallopian tube she had treated with multiple rounds of antibiotics – but those words were absolutely devastating.

She sent me off with pain meds & her recommendation that, at age 31, I have an oophorectomy, hysterectomy, & salpingectomy. I gave my “Mama Bear” & “Baby Bear” shirts to my pregnant cousin & said goodbye to my hopes of being pregnant again.

After my total hysterectomy, I balanced grieving a life I dreamed of & being endlessly grateful for the two healthy children I created. As I shared my journey online, people with endometriosis began reaching out for advice, support, & recommendations. Helping this incredible community became part of my own healing process & led me to a realization: What is a mother if not an advocate, a nurturer, someone who pours endless love & support into those who need her?

Turning pain into purpose, I thought about what this community needed most. Then Aubrion Rogers died. Aubrion was a beautiful 30-year-old black endometriosis advocate who begged doctors to take her pain seriously. In January 2022, she was rushed into surgery after her ovary burst & passed away from cardiac arrest during recovery.

The broken hearts were felt across the endometriosis community & with grief comes questions – painful questions around sexism in medicine, racial disparities in healthcare, & the failure to recognize endometriosis as a serious, whole-body disease that can be fatal.

I couldn’t solve sexism or systemic racism in healthcare, but I had to do something. So I transformed my advocacy into an organization dedicated to removing financial barriers to endometriosis diagnosis & treatment so patients can access the care they deserve. While I couldn’t create the large family I once envisioned, I found a beautiful way to nurture, advocate, & make a meaningful difference in the lives of those with endometriosis.