About Voices for Vaccines

Voices for Vaccines™ is a family-led organization that serves as a catalyst to spark positive peer-to-peer conversations about vaccines and the diseases they prevent by supporting communities, building networks, and developing fact-based content that enables parents to make healthy, informed decisions about vaccination for their children and their communities.

We strive for a world where children do not suffer from vaccine-preventable diseases. Our work:

  • empowers families to understand the true risks of these diseases
  • fosters confidence in vaccines, and
  • restores faith in the science that has prevented millions of childhood deaths.

Core Values

  • Parents are experts too: We recognize that parents are the experts regarding their own children; as such they need to be at the table when vaccine decisions are being made.
  • Parents need access to the science: We believe parents need appropriate access to the science and experts in order to build confidence in vaccines.
  • The science needs to be understandable: We know science needs to be understandable to be believable and the most effective way to translate this science is to personalize it. We explain science through stories, testimonials, conversations, and straight answers to hard questions.
  • Parents need community: We build a positive community for parents to learn and be empowered to make positive decisions about vaccination. In order to welcome uncertain parents, we frame our work as pro-vaccine rather than “anti-anti vaccine.”

Why I Vax

Merrilee Heard

I still have problems with getting both bronchitis and pneumonia, which the doctor attributes to having had whooping cough.

Read more Why I Vax stories, and submit your own.

Why I Vax

Staff

Karen Ernst profile photo

Karen Ernst, MA

Karen is a nationally-recognized expert in vaccine confidence with a decade's experience in grassroots organizing around the issue.
White woman with long, brown hair in a white shirt.

Beth Drummond, MPH

Beth, our program coordinator, is an infectious disease epidemiologist with a decade's experience working online with vaccine-hesitant people.
Breyana Williams, MPH

Breyana Williams, MPH CHES

Breyana serves as the Public Health Associate, using her skills in community health education to improve vaccine confidence.
Noah Louis Ferdinand

Noah Louis-Ferdinand

Noah is our Communications Coordinator, bringing our mission and message to the world via social media and other means.
Ashley Shelby

Ashley Shelby, MFA

Ashley is VFV's long-time advisor and copyeditor. She has also penned two books: South Pole Station, a novel, and Red River Rising, a work of non-fiction.
Dorit Reiss, PhD

Dorit Reiss, PhD

Dorit, a professor of law at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, is VFV's volunteer legal strategic advisor.

Scientific Advisory Board

Nathan Chomilo, MD

Nathan Chomilo, MD

Dr. Chomilo is a pediatrician and internist with Park Nicollet, Director with the Minnesota Department of Health and Human Services, and an assistant adjunct professor at the U of M.
Angela Shen, ScD, MPH

Angela Shen, ScD, MPH

Angela Shen is a visiting Research Scientist at the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Rachel Cunninham

Rachel Cunningham, MPH

Rachel Cunningham is an Immunization Registry and Educational Specialist at Texas Children’s Hospital.
Julie Broom, MD

Julie Boom, MD

Dr. Boom is the Director of Infant and Childhood Immunization for the Center for Vaccine Awareness and Research.
William Schaffner, MD

William Schaffner, MD

Dr. Shaffner is a Professor of Preventive Medicine in the Department of Health Policy and Professor of Infectious Diseases in the Department of Medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
Deborah Wexler, MD

Deborah Wexler, MD

Dr. Wexler is the founder and past executive director of Immunization Action Coalition
Alan Hinman, MD, MPH

Alan Hinman, MD, MPH

Dr. Hinman is the Director for Programs, Center for Vaccine Equity at the Task Force for Global Health.
Stanley Plotkin, MD

Stanley Plotkin, MD

Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania; Emeritus Professor at Wistar Institute; Former Chief, Division of Infectious Diseases, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Paul Offit, MD

Paul Offit MD

Dr. Offit is co-inventor of the rotavirus vaccine, and attending physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Family and Community Advisory Board

Voices for Vaccines is, at its heart, a family organization, so our family and community advisory board serves an important role. These individuals share their time to help us ensure our content is easy to understand, our work meets families where they are, and our messages address the biggest questions families have.

Julie Krause Gorom

Julie Krause Gorom

Julie is a stay-at-home mom to one son in Washington state.  She also does freelance work and has volunteered with Vax Northwest.
Jinny Suh

Jinny Suh

Jinny is a community organizer, parent, non-practicing attorney, small business owner, and advocate. She is the Founder and Leader of Immunize Texas.
Stacy Hillenburg

Stacy Hillenburg

Stacy lives in Illinois with her three children and her husband.  She works as an early childhood developmental therapist.
Lydia Greene

Lydia Greene

Lydia is a married mother of 3 who lives in Canadian Rockies. Once an antivaxxer, she is now in nursing school to pursue a career in public health.
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