From colleague to family through surrogacy

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Dr. Dena Engel gave the gift of parenthood to her coworker and friend, Jen Urena, and her wife, Adrienne, by being a surrogate.

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Adrienne (left), Dr. Engel (center) and Jen (right) formed a bond that made them family through surrogacy.

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Dr. Engel delivered a beautiful baby girl named Robin by cesarian section (C-section) at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns.

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Adrienne (left) and Jen (right) are grateful to Dr. Engel for making them a family of three, pictured here hiking in Banff National Park.

For more than six years, Jen Urena has worked as a physician assistant in the urology department at Sharp Rees-Stealy.

When she started at Sharp, Jen quickly understood the magic of the organization. She was able to offer The Sharp Experience, Sharp’s philosophy of extraordinary care, while working alongside amazing coworkers for a health care system that cared about its employees and their families.

This was important because Jen and her wife, Adrienne, dreamt of having a family of their own.

Journey to parenthood

Soon after getting married in 2019, Jen and Adrienne started fertility treatment. They attempted multiple intrauterine insemination (IUI) procedures without success.

Jen and Adrienne decided to move forward with in vitro fertilization (IVF). They were able to harvest fourteen eggs, which led to eight viable embryos. Through several attempts, Adrienne was able to get pregnant twice, but both pregnancies ended in miscarriage.

Throughout the ups and downs of their fertility journey, Jen shared updates with her coworkers, including Dr. Dena Engel, a urologist with Sharp Rees-Stealy, whom Jen worked with in the operating room.

“My husband and I had gone out with Jen and Adrienne several years earlier, so I had heard them talk about being excited to start a family,” says Dr. Engel. “I remember leaving lunch thinking they were such good people and would make great parents.”

Taking another avenue

After the emotional trauma and financial commitment of their IVF experience, Jen and Adrienne opted to pursue adoption. To their great delight, they were connected with a pregnant mother who chose them to raise their child. Jen and Adrienne were excited to finally grow their family. They began to share the news with family and friends, including Dr. Engel.

However, Jen and Adrienne were later devastated to learn the baby’s biological mother had miscarried in her second trimester.

“I was discouraged because it really seemed like it didn’t matter how much money or medical knowledge we had; we still couldn’t get a baby,” says Jen. “We had given up.”

She texted Dr. Engel the news of the loss.

“I remember being on a plane with my husband and turning to him to tell him the news about the miscarriage and blurting out the idea of me being a surrogate,” Dr. Engel says. “I don’t know why I had never thought about it before, but I had fallen for Jen and Adrienne.”

Making a family

After Jen and Adrienne recovered from their shock over Dr. Engel’s generous offer to serve as their surrogate, both families had a heartfelt discussion and started the lengthy process of making it official.

“I had no idea what to expect of the whole process,” says Dr. Engel. “I also had my own insecurities about it, like my age and if people would judge me or think poorly of me for doing it.”

After finalizing the medical and legal aspects of surrogacy, Dr. Engel became pregnant after the second traditional embryo transfer. Once they shared the news, Dr. Engel received tons of support from colleagues, friends and family, including her three children.

Throughout the pregnancy, the two families grew close. Dr. Engel says she felt even more responsibility during this pregnancy than she did during her previous pregnancies, especially knowing this was the last embryo the couple had.

In January 2024, Dr. Engel delivered a beautiful baby girl named Robin by cesarian section (C-section) at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns.

“Handing her off was the easiest part,” says Dr. Engel. “I took a deep breath, knowing she was healthy and was going to the most loving parents in the world.”

A gift for two families

During Dr. Engel’s C-section, she also underwent a planned salpingectomy, which is the removal of her fallopian tubes. Once removed, sending tissue from the tubes to pathology for examination is standard.

The pathology results showed early signs of pre-ovarian cancer. Though Dr. Engel had no family history of the disease, she knew ovarian cancer could develop in the next 5 to 10 years.

Four months after delivering Robin at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns, Dr. Engel returned for a hysterectomy.

“Being a surrogate for Jen was the best thing I have ever done in my life,” says Dr. Engel. “And because of my delivery, they found precancerous cells. Robin saved my life.”

Both families now share a special connection that has grown throughout their experience. They plan to spend time together regularly and even take future family vacations.

“We built a very special bond that has grown our friendship into family,” says Jen. “I can’t believe I got a baby and a best friend out of the deal.”

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