Fertility Scandal Victims to Gather : Health: A support group will start meeting in a couple of weeks with three to five donor couples seeking solace. Organizers hope some recipients will join too.

A Corona couple and a former UCI Medical Center administrator on Wednesday urged families ensnared in the UC Irvine fertility scandal to seek solace in a group uniting donors and recipients of allegedly stolen eggs and embryos.

John and Debbie Challender, the first of at least 12 couples to file suit in the controversy, and Debra Krahel, a former senior administrator and whistle-blower, said they want to create a dialogue among victims of the scandal, instead of resolving differences in the courts.

“We are hopeful a way can be created that is not fraught with acrimony and litigation, but rather with empathy and understanding to help bridge the fears that exist between biological and birth parents,” according to a prepared statement released by the group at a news conference.

But the members of the fledgling group--including psychologist Haig Musurlian, who is going to lead the sessions--acknowledged that recipients of allegedly ill-gotten eggs and embryos may hesitate to come forward because they fear custody battles.

“I try to put myself in their place,” John Challender said. “I don’t know if I would run to Canada or cover myself up in a hole.”

UC officials have alleged as many as 40 women may have been victimized in improper egg transfers by three UCI doctors at three Southern California clinics. The doctors deny any intentional wrongdoing.

Challender and his wife believe the doctors stole their embryos and gave them to a Newport Beach couple, who gave birth to twins. The Challenders used the news conference to reiterate their position that they do not intend to seek custody of the twins but would like to spend time with them and would like them to take DNA tests to determine their genetic origins.

“I want to see them. I want to love them. I want to be part of their lives,” Debbie Challender said. “I don’t want them to say when they’re 18, ‘You knew I existed and you walked away.’ ”

John Challender, whose family is Christian, has expressed dismay about the children’s upbringing in the Jewish faith. He said Wednesday that he would not try to interfere with their religious education, but he is “concerned about . . . their spiritual welfare in the absence of Jesus Christ.”

The support group will begin meeting in about two weeks, with three to five donor couples in attendance, organizers said.

Beyond providing support for one another, the group plans to work toward re-establishing trust between health providers and the public, informing patients of their rights and ensuring a scandal of this sort does not recur.

Anyone interested in information about the group can call (714) 248-4399.