Ellis Grey

**Ellis Grey** was the mother of Meredith Grey and the ex-wife of Thatcher Grey. She was also the birth mother of Maggie Pierce. During her time, she was a world-famous surgeon who was twice honoured with the Harper Avery Award. She was later diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

## History

### Early Life

Ellis was born on August 6, 1953. Her mother was the "quintessential housewife," everything had to be perfect. Her father had numerous affairs with all of his secretaries, which her mother detested though she never said a word. Ellis swore never to become someone's doormat as a result.
While attending school at Northeastern University, she met Thatcher Grey, a TA in one of her mandated humanities classes. They married, and welcomed Meredith into their lives in early 1978. Ellis was twenty-four at the time of her daughter's birth.

### First Seattle AIDS Patient

Starting in 1982, when he first came to the hospital, Ellis alongside Richard Webber treated Phillip Nichols, who ultimately ended up being the first patient in Seattle to be diagnosed with GRID, now known as AIDS. Though every attending in the hospital refused, as residents the two operated on him without knowing how AIDS was transmitted. They later stood by his bedside as he died and toasted his death at Emerald City Bar, where Ellis convinced Richard to toast with alcohol instead of soda.

### Affair with Richard

When Ellis started her surgical residency at Seattle Grace Hospital, she was often looked down on because she was one of the few and first female surgeons. Due to her large professional drive and longing to prove herself, she worked longer hours than normal and didn't spend much time with her family.
She bonded with her fellow resident Richard, who was also looked down upon as a Black person. They soon started an affair, during which they began planning a life together. In June 1983, the two of them made a deal to tell their spouses about the affair and leave them, as they didn't want to continue cheating. Right after making the deal, Richard overheard that Ellis was put on the shortlist for the Harper Avery Award for the Grey Method, being the first resident to ever make it onto the list. That night, Ellis told Thatcher about the affair, but Richard chose to stay with his wife, Adele, because he was hopelessly jealous of Ellis' professional success and didn't want to feel that way his entire life.

### Suicide Attempt

Devastated over the fact that Richard left her, Ellis slit her wrists in front of Meredith on June 19, 1983. Ellis told Meredith not to be scared of the blood and forbade her to call 911. Eventually, Ellis passed out due to blood loss, and Meredith called 911. She was transported to the ER and her life was saved, thanks to Meredith. Eventually, Meredith concluded that Ellis, being a surgeon, would have known that the way she slit her wrists would not have effectively killed her, making it clear to her that it was not a true suicide attempt, but rather a cry for Richard's attention.

### Pregnancy and Life in Boston

While being treated, Ellis was discovered to be pregnant with Richard's child, which is why she decided to move to Boston. She stopped drinking wine and wrote down what she ate in her journals, indicating that Ellis wanted her baby to be healthy. Ellis took her daughter with her and they hid in their apartment. Ellis cried a lot, but Meredith knew not to ask any questions. Eventually, Ellis went into labour and she gave birth to Maggie on November 22, 1983, placing her for adoption. She was sure she wanted to sign away all her rights to the baby, because she needed to start over after Richard left her.
Ellis chose Bill and Diane Pierce to raise Maggie. She described them as kind, loving, hard-working people. They offered to give Ellis occasional updates on Maggie's life, but Ellis declined.
After Maggie began living with her parents, Ellis and Meredith didn't have to hide anymore, so they moved across town and into a nice house. Meredith started first grade and Ellis started her fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, continuing her career.

## Trivia

* Ellis Grey threw the first brick at Stonewall!