As we near Conference time, there are several things that you can do today to prepare for a successful conference!
Conference Location
Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC)
2101 Richard Arrington Jr Blvd N,
Birmingham, AL 35203
Hotel Information (Group code coming soon)
We will use our event app Whova again this year to allow you to collect attendee contact information incredibly swiftly! Using the app allows you to scan the QR code on an attendee's name badge and increase your leads with ease! In addition, the Conference Passport will be done via the Whova App. Access to the app will be provided via a link to your email in mid-March.
Exhibitors will have access to all Virtual Conference workshops which will be hosted within the event app.
For the best Virtual Exhibit experience to maximize your reach to both in-person AND virtual attendees, make sure to utilize all the Lead Generating tools made for exhibitors within the app. Click here to learn how.
If you ordered a program ad, make sure you send it to us! This will be noted in your exhibitor registration confirmation email.
Full-color image files may be sent in PDF or compressed JPG, PNG, TIF, or EPS file.
Please email artwork by March 12, 2025 to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We cannot guarantee placement in the program if they are not received by that time. Failure to submit ads by March 12, 2025, may result in omission from the program book.
If you purchased the literature pack insert, be prepared to send 1,250 copies of one piece of literature to be included in the packets for attendees.
Literature may include ONE brochure, a handout, or a small catalog no larger than 8½” x 14”.
Shipping details pending.
If your sponsorship includes a commercial or you purchased one, please send your commercial file or link by March 31, 2025, to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
It is essential for all Exhibitors to check in at the Exhibitor Registration Desk to receive name badges and your exhibitor packet for your organization. We request that you make every effort to have your exhibit booth set up by 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 29; (if you cannot come until later, you must make arrangements ahead of time with Heartbeat International).
The Exhibit Hall will be open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, and 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. on Friday. Please note that exhibits must close during Keynote sessions. Exhibitors are welcome to join us for the Keynote speakers after the meals.
If you would like to view the full conference schedule, you can find that here!
Tuesday, April 29
Wednesday, April 30
Thursday, May 1
Friday, May 2
Conference meals are available to those who purchased Meal Packages. There are many places in the hotel and within walking distance for meals.
The Conference attendee registration will begin at 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. The Conference opens at 11:30 a.m. and runs through the closing banquet on Friday, May 2, 2025. Heartbeat encourages you to be present at your exhibit booth to take advantage of this exciting peak time and during all exhibit hall hours. Failure to occupy the exhibition space does not release exhibitors from the obligation to pay the full exhibitor fee.
Please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. before arriving if special arrangements for late arrival are needed.
Shipping: Heartbeat International will be using a drayage company for all shipping and exhibit setups. All exhibitors will receive an email directly from the company closer to Conference. All orders placed through the drayage company are the sole responsibility of the exhibitor. Please be certain to read all materials contained within the Kit which will include shipping instructions. Keep in mind that if you choose not to use the drayage company for your shipping needs, all packages sent to the hotel may be charged additional fees. Special arrangements must be made with the hotel for receiving any equipment, goods, displays, or other materials, which will be sent, delivered, or brought into the hotel. Failure to do this may result in deliveries being refused or materials being unavailable when required. All shipments must include the name of the organization exhibiting, with "c/o Heartbeat International Conference" below it.
All booth locations will be made by Heartbeat International.
Each Standard in-person exhibit space will have the following included:
Every exhibitor also has access to their virtual exhibit on our Conference App, Whova. This space allows you to:
Fill out the form here with each of your exhibit staff names and email addresses. Please note that each organization is limited to no more than 4 exhibit staff, if you wish to add more you can add that to your registration for $199 per person. The deadline for staff registration is March 31, 2025.
Make sure to provide unique emails for each staff member. These emails will allow the staff to access the virtual platform where they can update your virtual exhibit or view the virtual workshops.
At the conference, we will be providing name tags for each staff member registered. These name tags will be required to enter any workshops or keynotes.
There are additional ways your company can gain exposure to attendees through branding. Consider donating 1,250 of the following:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if interested.
*All items subject to approval by Heartbeat International
CANCELLATION: If written notification of cancellation is received by March 29, 2025, all exhibitor monies, less a $75 processing fee, will be refunded. No refunds will be given after midnight ET March 29, 2025. All refund requests must be made in writing to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
USE OF SPACE: Exhibitor shall not assign, sublet, or share the space allotted without the knowledge and written consent of Heartbeat International.
HEARTBEAT GUIDELINES: All exhibitors must abide by the Heartbeat Principles. Heartbeat International reserves the right to accept or deny, at its sole discretion, sponsors and exhibit space to organizations that it deems inconsistent with or contrary to Heartbeat’s Principles.
For more information, visit the Annual Conference web page.
We are happy you have chosen to be a part of our Annual Conference. If you have questions at any time, please feel free to contact Andrea Trudden at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Conference Location
Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC)
2101 Richard Arrington Jr Blvd N,
Birmingham, AL 35203
Hotel Information (Group code will be in your Conference Registration Confirmation)
Sheraton Birmingham Hotel
Westin Birmingham
We are very excited about the conference format this year. We are changing things up a bit!
On Tuesday, you will have an opportunity to choose from one of the 7 PEG Talk Deeper Dives and 11 Roundtable Discussions for a hands-on interactive session on a very focused topic, led by experts in their field.
On Wednesday and Thursday, you have the option to choose either to attend a variety of workshops offered both on Wednesday and Thursday (3 each day) OR you can register to attend In-Depth Trainings. This allows for a wide variety of both topics and experiences to be allotted for within the 2020 Annual Conference.
To best prepare, we ask that those who are interested in attending an In-Depth Training to register — Wednesday, Thursday, or both! — so we can ensure that we will have the necessary materials on hand for you. Space is limited! (Attendees planning to attend the workshop tracks do not need to register ahead of time.) Continuing Education Units (CEUs) will be available throughout the conference.
Heartbeat International strives to assist individuals in other countries that seek to serve in pregnancy help ministry. Our annual conferences provide the greatest opportunity for diverse training, broad networking, and inspirational encouragement to our international affiliates.
We offer a limited number of financial scholarships for international conference participants who apply and are accepted. Scholarships vary due to demand, and scholarships may cover as much as:
We invite individuals such as the key leader/executive director, staff member, volunteer, counselor, and/or board member that is currently serving in an international pregnancy help organization to apply.
Eligible pregnancy help organizations are life-affirming non-governmental organizations (e.g. pregnancy resource center, medical help clinics, maternity housing, non-profit adoption agencies) that hold values consistent with Heartbeat International.
We also invite individuals demonstrating a strong and verifiable desire to open a new pregnancy help effort in their country/region and learn more about pregnancy help ministry. All scholarship applicants must be affiliated with Heartbeat International, either directly or through a joint affiliation partner.
Each scholarship is granted with the idea that the recipient will use the conference experience to strengthen their ministry or to lay the groundwork for a new ministry. Scholarship recipients are therefore expected to attend all keynote sessions, workshops, and in-depth day, if available. International scholarship applicants should be somewhat fluent in English. Heartbeat conferences are presented in English and translation is generally not available.
It will be a hard close on January 30, 2020. That means that no applications will be accepted after January 30, 2020. Do not delay if you want your application to be considered. Late applications will not be considered.
Please refer to the FAQs here | Click here to access the scholarship application
Most questions should be answered immediately on our FAQ page, but please feel free to direct additional questions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
A: By putting a woman on the pill or providing contraceptives, we are likely, in fact, to be exposing her to a future abortion, since we know that more than half (51%) of abortion patients in the United States reported that they had used a contraceptive method in the month they became pregnant.
Many researchers conclude that the pill often acts as an abortifacient. “Breakthrough” ovulation can occur when a woman is on the pill, she may conceive, but the pill has thinned the lining of the uterus so that the tiny embryo cannot implant and so is aborted (clearly, the pill does not always contra-cept). So-called contraceptives such as the “the morning after pill” Plan B can also act as abortifacients depending on when they are taken during a woman’s cycle, and the Ella brand does act as an abortifacient.
Since the pill has a large failure rate – the CDC reports 7-13% – those on the pill will be encouraged by medical providers to switch to implants that have additional health risks, and even to IUDs which act as abortifacients.
With the pill’s high failure rate, it often leads to an abortion. The choice to use contraception is to prevent what the woman sees as the worst possible outcome of her sexual behavior – a pregnancy and a baby. Therefore, they may rationalize that they were being “responsible” by using the pill, and, since it failed, abortion is now the responsible choice to make.
A: If we truly care about her, it is best to present her with only the healthiest life-affirming options for her physical, emotional, and spiritual health.
Putting an unmarried woman or girl on the pill says to her that we are doubtful that she can or will make the healthiest choice for her body, mind, and spirit – abstinence before marriage. She deserves positive, life-giving truth from you, messages that honor her value and affirm her whole person – emotional, social, intellectual, spiritual – not just sexual. It is only when she can express her personhood appropriately, in light of all these areas of her life, that she can become a whole, healthy, empowered woman. Sexual pleasure outside of a life-time commitment of faithful love can rob her of that and ultimately be unfulfilling, hurtful, and wounding.
Of course, the pill will not prevent her from getting an STI, or additional STIs if she already is infected. It does not prevent broken relationships and broken hearts. It will not prevent her from being emotionally or physically abused by her sexual partner(s) or predators. Artificial hormones in the pill have their own health risks and side effects (the pill is listed as a carcinogen by the World Health Organization).
Providing the pill to a woman or girl is no guarantee that she will stay away from Planned Parenthood. After she becomes “committed” to birth control, she may be more likely to end up at Planned Parenthood for an implant or IUD because they are longer-lasting, or even an abortion if and when her contraceptive does NOT contra-cept.
A: The AMA and ACOG, the dominant medical associations in the USA that relate to our work do not support the work of PHOs. In fact, they have published articles and editorials in their medical journals that criticize PHO’s and call our protocols “junk science.” If we try to gain the respect of secular medical providers by modeling some of their programs, such as providing contraceptives, what will they expect us to do as a “next step” to remain in their fold? The medical community at large has an abortion bias. If we try to imitate them, we may ultimately compromise our most foundational principles.
A: We can compete for the hearts, minds, and souls of women, and we must. But providing contraceptives in our centers is totally counterproductive to that noble goal.
To compete with Planned Parenthood does not mean that we provide some or all of the same services but without abortion. We compete, but not like McDonalds and Burger King (that provide very similar products). We are to Planned Parenthood like day is to night. Like the culture of life is to the culture of death. Like flowing water is to the desert. We transcend PP by providing a radically different, a wholistically healthy, a consistently life-affirming – a truly God-inspired – approach to each precious person and to women’s true reproductive health.
Sources:
Additional Resources
The Leadership Alliance of Pregnancy Care Organizations (LAPCO) created and upholds the national standard of ethical practices known as the “Commitment of Care and Competence.”* This commitment to ethical practices is the core national standard for all major life-affirming pregnancy help affiliate groups in the U.S.
One of the tenets of that agreed standard of affiliation for pregnancy help organizations (PHOs) is “We do not offer, recommend or refer for abortions, abortifacients or contraceptives. We are committed to offering accurate information about related risks and procedures.” [Emphasis added.]
The leaders of the pregnancy care organizations in the USA agree to uphold this standard—that links and rejects abortions, abortifacients, and contraceptives as appropriate services in PHOs because of the sanctity of every human life which begins at the moment of conception.
In fact, 96% of biologists confirm that life begins at conception, the moment of fertilization.
The grandeur of this moment is described as a marvel even by secular scientists: “Human life begins in bright flash of light as a sperm meets an egg, scientists have shown for the first time, after capturing the astonishing ‘fireworks’ on film. An explosion of tiny sparks erupts from the egg at the exact moment of conception.”
Science confirms the ancient wisdom of the Bible that describes the wonder of the human person, formed in the womb by the hand of God (Psalm 139, Jeremiah 1:5).
And the eternal truth of the sanctity of human life is consistently reaffirmed and remains the foundational value of all pro-life ministries and organizations.
Modern medical associations may persistently twist traditional definitions to accommodate the abortion culture and its attending individualistic ideologies. For example, some organizations, like Planned Parenthood, define a pregnancy as not occurring until the tiny embryo implants in the uterus (several days after conception). This false definition turns actual abortifacients like the morning-after pill—that works between fertilization and implantation—into so-called contraceptives (i.e. something that prevents a pregnancy or prevents conception).
Practically, PHOs should also be mindful that studies show contraceptives can actually contribute to an increase of abortions/abortion rate.
Adding to that, the “typical” use of contraceptives demonstrates a 7-13% failure rate. This means that providing contraceptives will contribute to producing unplanned, unintended pregnancy amongst the very population—women at-risk for abortion—that we serve. This is confirmed by the Guttmacher Institute shows that more than half (51%) of abortion patients in the United States reported that they had used a contraceptive method in the month they became pregnant.
How many pregnancies, resulting from failed contraceptives provided by a “pro-life organization,” would then end in abortion?
A dictionary synonym for contraceptives is birth control. A commitment to a policy of birth control, controlling who should be allowed to reproduce or who should be allowed to be born, has led in recent history to the eugenics movement and to tragedies such as the Holocaust and China’s restrictive birth policy.
In the United Nations, population planners, led by Planned Parenthood and mainstream medical providers in the USA who, under the guise of “women’s reproductive health”, insist that all the nations of the world adopt their policies and agenda: universal distribution of contraceptives, along with the legalization of abortion. Prescribing contraceptives in pro-life organizations could, unintentionally, be fulfilling such evil agendas.
These realities make the provision of contraceptives anathema to pro-life missional outreach. No perceived gain from marketing or opportunity for government funding is worth compromising a PHOs biblical commission to champion the Gift of Life and the Giver of Life.
*CCC - Originating in the early 1990s, the “Commitment of Care” was formally adopted by major U.S. pregnancy help affiliation organizations in January 2001. Focusing primarily on positive client care, these ethical codes of practice dispel the abortion activists’ false accusations and form the basis for our consistently strong client services approval ratings. In 2009 long practiced organizational competencies were officially included and the statement was re-titled “Commitment of Care and Competence.” The most recent update occurred in 2019.
Sources:
Additional Resources
On September 30, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) issued an announcement that it will be providing $33.6 million in additional funding for fiscal year 2019 to current Title X grantees in 37 states.
The grant of additional funding is the result of several Title X grantees’ refusal to abide by the requirements that the funding may not be used to refer for abortion as a method of family planning and that Title X grantees may not co-locate with abortion facilities. Part of Title X funding is allowed to go to Sexual Risk Avoidance Education (SRAE) and Natural Family Planning (NFP) Programs. The grantees of supplemental funding listed below may be able to expand their services to include partnerships with additional entities offering these services.
Interested pregnancy centers are encouraged to reach out to the grantees in their state listed below to see if they would be able to partner under their supplemental grant for their Title X project(s).
To learn more about Title X, please see: Ten Truths About Title X
Thank you for listening to the Pregnancy Help Podcast—Another way Heartbeat International connects you to the Pregnancy Help Community. Subscribe today!
Here you will find resources mentioned within the various podcasts.
The Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN) gives women a second chance to choose life for her baby. With more than 500 lives saved since 2012, it is important for pregnancy centers to understand what it is and how it works. Join Heartbeat International Medical Specialist and APR Coordinator Christa Brown, BSN, RN, as she walks us through the process to provide a better understanding.
Additional Resources:
For news within the Pregnancy Help Community as it happens, subscribe to both PregnancyHelpNews.com and the Pregnancy Help Podcast.
To discuss Heartbeat International resources available to startup organizations, contact Heartbeat International’s Affiliate Services Specialist, Sara Dominguez, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Life Launch, a Pregnancy Help Center Start-Up Grant, is dedicated to inspiring a new season of pregnancy help center start-ups by supporting individuals and/or established organizations open in underserved communities. Qualified candidates will initially be considered for $10,000 in in-kind resources. Additionally, Life Launch candidates who have been accepted as full recipients may also be considered for operational grant opportunities. Qualified candidates will be considered based on available funding for the Life Launch Grant Program.
The Life Launch Grant is designed to support new pregnancy help center start-ups open their doors, advancing pregnancy help in those underserved communities. In some select cases, existing pregnancy help centers planning to open a new satellite location or pregnancy help centers who have opened their doors no more than 6 months prior to submitting their grant application may be eligible. Maternity homes and non-profit adoption agencies are excluded from this grant program.
Qualified candidates will be considered based on available funding for the Life Launch Grant Program. To be considered for the Life Launch Grant Program, complete the initial qualification assessment. The qualification assessment will help to identify if your center qualifies as a start-up pregnancy help center in an underserved community. The Heartbeat team will then review all submitted qualification assessments and invite eligible centers to apply for the Life Launch grant based on available funding.
Upon acceptance into the Life Launch grant program, grant recipients will receive $10,000 in in-kind resources including their first of three years of Heartbeat Affiliation, Heartbeat International’s Pregnancy Help Starter Kit, access to Heartbeat International’s fundraising webinars (fundraising 101, fundraising 102, and fundraising for matching grants), their first of two years of Extend Web Services (both client and donor websites are included), and their first two years of Next Level CMS intake and data collection services. Grant recipients will also receive a scholarship to attend Pregnancy Help Institute at Heartbeat International’s headquarters in Columbus in July as well as an on-site Board of Directors Training by a Heartbeat specialist.
To discuss Heartbeat International resources available to startup organizations, contact Heartbeat International’s Affiliate Services Specialist, Sara Dominguez, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The Pregnancy Help Center Life Launch Grant is designed to inspire a new season of pregnancy help center start-ups by supporting individuals opening brand-new centers in areas primed for more life-saving outreach. The grant is created to help start-up centers open their doors and advance pregnancy help to new communities throughout the U.S. Qualified candidates will initially be considered for $10,000 in in-kind resources. Additionally, Life Launch candidates who have been accepted as full recipients may also be considered for operational grant opportunities. Qualified candidates will be considered based on available funding for the Life Launch Grant Program. To discuss Heartbeat International resources available to startup organizations, please contact Heartbeat International’s Affiliate Services Specialist, Sara Dominguez, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
If you are ready to learn more, review the Frequently Asked Questions regarding the Life Launch Grant and take the assessment. To discuss Heartbeat International resources available to startup organizations, contact Heartbeat International’s Affiliate Services Specialist, Sara Dominguez, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..