How Joel Cruz got twin joys

Like a first-time parent, businessman Joel Santos Cruz (president & CEO of brands Aficionado Germany Perfumes) is hands-on in taking care of his five-month-old twin children Prince Sean and Princess Synne even if they each have a uniformed yaya. Joel has converted the master bedroom of his condo unit at the 30th floor of a high-rise with a breath-taking view of the Manila Bay (especially at sunset) into a nursery. Before you enter, you have to remove your shoes/slippers, wear a mask and sterilize your hands.

“So that the kids won’t get infected,” explained Papa Joel who is also, because he’s a confirmed bachelor, the kids’ Mama. “The weather is bad and many people are getting sick.”

The twins are Joel’s biological children, all right, but they were not conceived the, you know, “usual” way.

“I am not capable,” admitted Joel and not because he’s sterile or impotent. “I can’t do it with a woman. Hindi ko talaga kaya. I never had any intimate relationship with a woman. Talagang even when I was a kid, attracted na ako sa boys.”

So he did it through IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization), the same way Hollywood celebrities of the third kind (who want to have kids) are doing.

“I actually began the process here in the Philippines 10 years ago but it didn’t work,” related Joel. “I consulted two specialists pero nothing happened. The egg cells were bought abroad and the surrogate mothers were Filipinas. We tried the procedure three times but we failed.”

Just when he was losing hope, Joel tried checking the Internet and, eureka, he found what he had been looking for.

To make a long story short, initially he chose a Ukrainian as surrogate mother but Joel was rejected because he’d be a single father.

“It’s against the law in Ukraine daw,” said Joel. “So they told me to try Russia kasi doon puede ang single father. So I went to Moscow. It was a law firm, with a clientele around the world, that took care of everything — contacting the doctor, looking for the surrogate mother, everything. I stayed there for five days because I had to submit my sperm.”

Asked if he needed any help, Joel shook his head.

“No, I did not. I just arrived when I first did it, alone in a room, but my sperm was negative daw so I had to rest before I did it again.”

Then, the next requirements.

“I chose a woman who looks like Julia Roberts, long-legged and a 31-year-old single mother. I knew her through film clips but she never knew nor saw me.”

Joel submitted his sperm in August 2011 and after five months, on Jan. 12, 2012, he got a call that the procedure was working, the surrogate mother was conceiving.

“I got excited when they told me na twins daw after the ultrasound.”

The whole contract costs around P6M per child but Joel was charged an additional half of that amount because he was having twins.

“I guess it runs in our family,” said Joel. “On my father’s side, mayroon silang triplets.”

The surrogate mother gave birth on Sept. 4 last year, three days ahead of the original date (Sept. 22).

“I arrived one week after nanganak siya. But before I left home, I already saw how the twins looked at kitang-kita ko na Cruz na Cruz ang mga mukha, especially Princess who looks like me. There were so many documents to submit — birth certificates, permit from the Department of Justice, etc. — before I could bring the babies home in October. But I never met their mother. Bawal. The twins traveled with Russian passports but now, they have dual passports, Russian and Filipino.”

Unlike Elton John who has a partner (they have two children, also born the same way), Joel has none so he’s bringing up Prince and Princess as both Nanay and Tatay, somewhat like Dolphy’s character in the classic Lino Brocka comedy-drama Ang Tatay Kong Nanay (with then kiddie actor Niño Muhlach as the adopted son).

Didn’t he ever think of simply adopting a child?

“No,” insisted Joel, “gusto ko talaga sarili kong dugo. I have several nieces and nephews, children of my five siblings, at parang mga anak ko na sila, so why adopt? All of them I spoil. They are just as excited about Prince and Princess as I am.”

When the twins grow up, how will Joel explain the whole thing to them?

“I will do it gradually. I will be frank and honest with them. I will not hide anything from them. I guess they will realize that their father is gay, walang partner, who rose from humble beginnings and achieved what he has through hard work. I will also explain to them kung paano sila ginawa.”

Joel said that he and the surrogate mother eventually became friends.

“But I didn’t want her to breastfeed the babies kasi baka masyadong ma-attach sa kanya at hanap-hanapin siya. Anyway, Prince and Princess actually have several mothers, mga sisters ko. We are a closely-knit family, we travel together and watch movies and eat out together, so we also help one another raise the children.”

Coming from a big family, Joel plans to have the same one of his own. Already, he’s preparing for “the next one” --- yes, with the same surrogate mother.

“I want it that way so that my kids will have the same mother,” said Joel.

(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. You may also send your questions to [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on www.twitter/therealrickylo.)