From my arms to yours

PAYSON — As a teenager growing up in Provo, Crystal Young decided to embark on a path she knew might alarm her family and shock her neighbors but which would ultimately bring joy to a childless couple.

Years later, Young delivered 6-pound, 4-ounce Baku on April 14, 2003 — but the baby boy was not destined to be her own. She undertook the pregnancy and birth, which occurred in a Nevada hospital, for Naohiro and Kiyomi from Japan.

Young, 26, is a surrogate mother who agreed to have the couple's fertilized embryo transferred into her uterus.

The experience of getting Baku into this world began a bond so strong, Young hosted a baby shower for Kiyomi in January 2003. This past weekend, the entire family stayed with her at her Payson home, where there was an open house in honor of Baku's first birthday.

"Most people, when there is a pregnancy, they add a baby to their family," Young said. "I added a family to my family."

Naohiro and Kiyomi traveled more than 5,600 miles from their home to share Baku's birthday with Young. They hope to make it an annual event.

The continuing connection among all of them is plain to see.

On Young's wall in her living room, there is a family portrait of all of them. A single mother, Young has a 6-year-old son who calls Baku his brother. And both Young and Kiyomi wear identical necklaces given to them by Naohiro as the "moms" of the child Naohiro has always longed for.

Kiyomi, because of cancer, had to have a partial hysterectomy and cannot carry a baby.

Through a translator, the couple said they had given up hope of ever having a child until they learned of the option of surrogacy. Wiping away tears, Kiyomi said her gratitude to Young is so immense, it is impossible to describe her feelings. Naohiro said he views Young almost like a goddess who brought him happiness.

Critics and proponents

Because surrogacy has been banned in many countries, including Japan, it is not uncommon for foreign couples to seek surrogate mothers in the United States, where laws governing the practice vary from state to state. Naohiro and Kiyomi, for example, did not want their photos taken or their last name revealed because they fear reprisals in their own country.