Mercy

Mercy....

Surrogate mother of Cecil and Gervais. She is of Kenyan origin but lives in Somerset. She is very loyal to her Kenyan culture and likes to follow the superstitions and beliefs. One particular tradition was the naming convention for children and the custom of taking the maternal grandparents' names. This, as well as other folklore, caused Mercy particular frustration and internal conflict, even to the point of questioning her sound views of surrogacy per se.  Has made surrogacy her 'occupation' and has given birth to numerous children just for surrogacy (for heterosexual and homosexual couples). The babies are 'handed over' at a very early age and the agreement is that there will be no contact between her and her biological children; she is purely used to carry and birth the babies. Following IVF treatment she receives 60% of the full amount and then the remaining 40% on handing over the newborn(s). At the IVF stage with homosexuals they are not told whose cells are used for the resulting pregnancy (so the fathers, in this case, are not aware which one is the biological father). However, in theory, this could be sorted out with a DNA test at a later date.

Despite being a pioneer for surrogacy and partaking in several interviews for local newspapers and women's magazines, Mercy does have strong maternal feelings for Gervais and Cyril, and is struggling to come to terms with the fact that she will never have them as her own.