WS Chronicle

In recognition of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, Winston-Salem native Mary Moore created a space where those who have experienced loss can connect with each other and openly talk about their experiences.

Moore said the idea for the Pregnancy Infant Loss Awareness Conference came to her earlier this year, around the birthday of her triplet daughters Miracle, Makenzie, and Micaiah. “After I made a post about my babies’ birthday… I just had a vision for this event,” said Moore when discussing the conference. 

“It really took me years to be able to talk about my girls without breaking down because I went through so much when I had them.”

With less than five months to plan the event, Moore said she immediately got to work. Moore said after losing her daughters in 2018, a lot of people reached out to her wanting advice on how to cope, so she knew she wanted the event to focus on managing emotions. One of the first people Moore reached out to was Tameka Goods, founder of the S&K Preemie Love Foundation, a nonprofit which was started in memory of her two daughters who passed away prematurely. 

Moore also reached out to LaDacia Stone, who manages the “Dear Mamas” social media pages, which regularly post positive messages to mothers and women. Stone started Dear Mamas after having a stillbirth. 

During the conference Moore, Goods, and Stone talked about how they were able to cope with their loss and what motivated them to push forward and decide to help others. 

Moore said she also wanted to hold the conference to let people know about Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. Because it shares October with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Moore said it’s often forgotten. 

“It was crazy to me how many people did not know that it even exists or that there’s a ribbon for them. Most people think about breast cancer awareness … so that really made me want to bring some awareness to Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month,” Moore said. 

In addition to listening to speakers and connecting with other women, attendees also had the opportunity to win raffles and other prizes. There were also several vendors and service providers on hand to discuss therapy and other options for dealing with grief. Moore said the conference is just the beginning; she’s already in the process of launching a support group that will meet monthly. 

When asked about the future of the conference, Moore said she’s confident that it will become an annual event that grows every year. Since hosting the conference, Moore has already been invited to speak at several different events.  

“I have strong faith that it will continue to grow and get bigger,” Moore said. “It motivates me more when people reach out to me because it’s like, OK I’m doing something right … like I’m finally strong enough to help other people and I really feel like that’s my calling.”