PUSH at Shades of Blue Project Summit: Building Connections, Driving Change

Shining a Light on Stillbirth at the Shades of Blue Black Maternal Mental Health Summit

Last week, our PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy directors traveled to Houston, Texas for an inspiring gathering focused on maternal mental health, perinatal loss, and prevention.

Entering the conference our Directors immediately felt they were in the right place!

This event was more than just a summit. It was rooms full of powerful, committed advocates, healthcare professionals, and community leaders all putting in the work to create meaningful change.

Shades of Blue Project Founder & PUSH Board Member, Kay Matthews set the tone for an inspiring event.

Marjorie Vail, our Director of Outreach, was honored to be selected to share her knowledge in her informative session (Supporting Your Birthing Person Client Post Perinatal Loss) along with co-presenter and PUSH Director of Education, Elizabeth O'Donnell (sharing Aaliyah in Action's support resources). Their presentation included a screening of our impactful film, PUSH, which drove home the point of the urgency for change.

Our directors attended presentations from national experts, including research on perinatal death, maternal wellness, and advocacy strategies. They also connected with doctors, health department leaders, and advocacy organizations—the exact type of partners who can help us push prevention forward in more communities. Watch the video recap on IG!

Camila Vintimilla enjoying learning and meeting fellow advocates and experts at the summit in her home state.

“It was motivating to be in a room where everyone wasn’t just talking about change—they were doing the work. These are exactly the spaces PUSH needs to be in to make an impact.” — Camila Vintimilla, PUSH Director of Community Engagement

Our Directors had a blast getting to know others on the frontline of this movement in person in a fun setting.

The energy, the collaboration, and the ideas we brought home reaffirm our mission: to make stillbirth prevention and awareness a priority nationwide. We will have more recaps from our exciting speaking opportunities to share with you before the year ends!

Our Next Step: Taking Awareness Further

Events like the Shades of Blue Summit open doors to new collaborations and communities—but attending, presenting, and following up with these connections takes resources.

If you believe in this mission, we’re asking for your support to help us reach more conferences, communities, and leaders—so that every family, provider, and policymaker hears the prevention message.

Donate Here to Support Our Advocacy, Education and Awareness Work

Your donation will directly support travel, materials, and outreach for future events where PUSH can amplify stillbirth prevention.

Together, we can keep pushing awareness further—until every pregnancy gets the attention and protection it deserves.