Stewart Zuckerbrod was among the first in Houston to become a father through surrogacy.
In need of an eye doctor? Look no further than Houston Eye Associates’ Dr. Stewart Zuckerbrod, a well-known Houston ophthalmologist. Zuckerbrod holds multiple degrees and has won several awards for his medical prowess. He’s taught at the Baylor College of Medicine and UT Health Science Center-Houston. But there is much more to Dr. Zuckerbrod than his work.
Born in Germany as an Army brat, he became a double-major in biology and German literature at the State University of New York at Binghamton. He would go on to lecture in Germany about his ophthalmology research. Beyond that, he loves gardening, photography, and theater.
“I’ve always maintained a connection with the arts,” Zuckerbrod says. “I started singing in my 40s, and for many years I sang with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Houston.” He was recently the cantor at a Clear Lake synagogue, singing for the high holy days of Yom Kippur and
Rosh Hashanah.
“It took four to five months to prepare for that,” he says. “But it was wonderful.”
He has also written two plays that were performed on stage. His collaboration with Deborah Boily, Songs I Was Born to Sing (a gay-musical take on the classical Greek comedy Lysistrata), premiered at Stages Repertory Theatre in 2006. He has served on the board of Stages as well.
But his real love has been his children. He loved being a stepparent in a previous relationship, and after that relationship ended he explored the idea of adopting a child of his own. He finally decided to use a surrogate in 2000, and became one of the first gay men in Houston to do so. Today, his twin girls, Samara and Frances, are juniors at Bellaire High School.
“They are smart kids, so they have a lot of extra classes and homework,” he says. “Basically, we spend time at home doing homework. I try to have a family dinner every night, but they also have extra activities. One is into modeling, and one has a boyfriend, so we are all very busy.”
And although he enjoys cooking, he says preparing dinner for the girls is a little difficult. “They have very different tastes, so it can be a challenge. Actually, our housekeeper does a lot of the meal preparation.” —Marene Gustin
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