Ellas Umbrella

Ella’s Umbrella was established after the unexpected death of 13-month-old Ella Mertens. She died from an undiagnosed heart defect in 2017.

Kids shouldn’t die.

And yet, in the U.S. alone, 40,000 babies are born each year with congenital heart defects (CHDs).

That’s one child every fifteen minutes.

CHDs cause more infant deaths than any other birth defect, yet funding remains limited compared to other childhood conditions.

Ella’s life was cut short, but with earlier answers and stronger treatment options, her life might have been saved.

We can’t change what happened to her, but we can work to keep it from happening to other kids.

And the good news is, it doesn’t take massive resources to make meaningful progress in such an underfunded space. Even a small amount of strategic support can change outcomes for kids. It just takes people like us who care enough to take action and come together around what matters most.

Ella’s Umbrella exists so that families facing the unimaginable don’t have to face it alone. And fewer have to face it at all.

It is a shelter of support, hope, and progress for families facing CHD, a place for everyone to lock arms and look toward a brighter future, even in the midst of the storm.