Kelley J. Smith, LPC, LCPC, PMH-C, CBS
Co-Chair
Kelley J. Smith, LPC, LCPC, PMH-C, CBS Co-Chair
Kelley Smith is a licensed professional counselor in the District of Columbia. She obtained her bachelor’s degree from Old Dominion University in Human Services and later her Master’s degree from Bowie State University in Counseling Psychology. Since 2014, she has been dedicated to making sure underserved families in the District of Columbia have access to mental health treatment and resources. In 2021, she became a mother and shifted her focus to Early Childhood Mental health. She is a member of ZERO TO THREE’s HealthySteps program and currently provides early childhood development support, including child development, social-emotional and behavioral screenings, development and behavior consults, positive parenting guidance, care coordination and systems navigation, and maternal mental health support to families at Unity Healthcare clinic in Washington, DC. Kelley has received her certification in Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health from Georgetown University and her Perinatal Mental Health Certification through PSI. She has received training in Trauma and Attachment and is working toward becoming an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant. Kelley strives to strengthen family systems through establishing healthy attachment and bonding.
Kyra Vocci 
Co-Chair
Kyra Vocci was born and raised in Montgomery County, Maryland, and now resides in Towson with her husband and two sons. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Washington College and has dedicated the past 18 years to higher education administration at Johns Hopkins University. Kyra currently serves as the Administrative Manager for the Ralph O’Connor Sustainable Energy Institute (ROSEI), where she specializes in grants administration, federal grants and contracts management, financial analysis, operations, and strategic planning.
Following the devastating loss of her beloved sister, Andrea Kolbe, to suicide in December 2023 due to complications from postpartum depression and psychosis, Kyra found Postpartum Support International online while searching for answers, support, and ways to create change. That discovery became the catalyst for her advocacy work and lifelong commitment to improving access to maternal mental healthcare, education, and awareness surrounding perinatal mental health conditions.
Today, Kyra is deeply dedicated to honoring Andrea’s life and legacy by advocating for mothers and families affected by perinatal mental health conditions. Through community outreach, advocacy, fundraising, awareness campaigns, and her work with Andrea’s Wish Foundation, she strives to ensure that no mother feels alone in her journey and that families have access to the critical resources, support, and compassionate care they deserve.
Meghan Matthews, LCSW-C, LICSW, LCSW, PMH-C
Secretary
Meghan Matthews, LCSW-C, LICSW, LCSW, PMH-C is a licensed clinical social worker and is honored to serve as the Secretary of the Maryland Chapter of Postpartum Support International. Licensed in Maryland, Washington, DC, Tennessee, and Louisiana, she brings over 15 years of experience in mental health care, including 10 years at the master’s level, with a background spanning emergency psychiatric services, inpatient and outpatient care, PRP services, the VA hospital system, and private practice.
Meghan is both a clinician and an advocate, with a particular focus on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, group facilitation, and provider education. Her personal experience navigating pregnancy and postpartum during the COVID-19 pandemic deepened her awareness and clinical insight into PMADs and strengthened her commitment to ensuring that parents receive care without shame. In her role with PSI Maryland, Meghan supports the chapter’s organizational and advocacy efforts, with a strong belief in accessible, stigma-free, and well-coordinated perinatal mental health support for individuals and families across the state.
Angela Lee, 
Liaison
Angela Lee is a mission-driven nonprofit professional whose work involves integrating programs, communications, and policy to advance organizational strategy and create meaningful impact. Driven by her lived experience with perinatal trauma in 2021, Angela is passionate about improving perinatal and family well-being and expanding access to support for parents.
Angela currently leads the development of a national program supporting small business professionals in the government contracting space where she oversees all aspects of strategy, program design, program development, marketing and launch, and evaluation and growth. Throughout her nonprofit career, she has built programs and led communications, advocacy, and partnership initiatives across multiple organizations. Most recently, she led communications and programs for a nonprofit focused on mental health and substance use disorder care, where advancing perinatal mental health was a key priority.
Angela believes every parent deserves compassionate, accessible mental health care and is committed to helping organizations make that vision a reality.
Nahir Cruz 
Treasurer
Nahir Cruz, Treasuruer
Nahir Cruz (she/her) is an accountant and nonprofit operations leader with over 10 years of experience. She is passionate about financial operations that do more than count numbers by reflecting the story of an organization’s mission and impact. Throughout her career, she has led initiatives to strengthen customer service and cross-functional collaborations, implement efficient financial systems, and support responsible AI practices that maintain compliance standards while fostering healthy and effective work environments.
Beyond her professional work, Nahir is deeply committed to mental health advocacy and is passionate about developing systems that better support individuals and families before they reach a point of crisis. Shaped by her own personal experiences, she believes compassionate care and support should never have barriers. As a Postpartum Support International (PSI) Climb Leader (@ClimbOutMaryland) and Blue Dot Ambassador, she is passionate about ensuring that individuals and families know they are not alone, and providing access to resources and support throughout parenthood.
She is especially grateful for the support of her large family — including her grandparents and parents (both by birth and marriage), sisters, husband, and children— who continue to shape her in the arena, as a leader, spouse and mother.
Carolina Carbajal, LCPC, PMH-C
Alliance Co-Lead
Carolina is a licensed professional counselor in DC, MD, and VA and holds certifications in perinatal mental health, hypnotherapy, anger management, and life and success coaching. Carolina is pursuing her doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision at Oregon State University. Her dissertation focuses on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. As a private practice owner, Carolina provides workshops for student parents. Carolina contracts with The Womb Room in Baltimore, MD, offering counseling to individuals navigating perinatal mental health challenges during childbirth. Carolina is part of the Healthy Brain Child Development Study (HBCD) research team at Johns Hopkins University, working with pregnant women and babies. Carolina is dedicated to advocating, raising awareness, and educating marginalized communities about perinatal mental health support.
Teara Q. Booker, MPH, CD, ERYT, Alliance Co-Lead
Teara Q. Booker, MPH, CD, ERYT, is a powerhouse in public and maternal health and holistic wellness, proudly serving as a new Board Member and Co-Alliance Leader for the Maryland Chapter of Postpartum Support International. With over two decades of public service and nearly a decade dedicated to full-spectrum birth work, Teara brings unmatched experience, compassion, and leadership to every space she enters.
A retired firefighter paramedic, Teara quite literally helped bring life into the world — delivering nearly 100 babies in the back of an ambulance. For the past 9 years, she has supported families as a full-spectrum doula, guiding them through pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and beyond. She is also a Perinatal Life Coach, Prenatal and Postnatal Nutrition Specialist, and a nationally recognized Perinatal Mental Health Ambassador and Champion.
Teara serves as a PSI Peer Mentor and a BIPOC Birth Trauma Support Leader, advocating fiercely for culturally responsive care, healing, and equity in maternal health outcomes. Her work centers trauma-informed, community-driven, and holistic approaches to support birthing people across every stage of life.
She is the Founder & CEO of Well Rooted Birth and Wellness, a thriving maternal health and wellness organization dedicated to empowering families through education, emotional support, healing modalities, and comprehensive perinatal care.
A dynamic facilitator, educator, and wellness practitioner, Teara continues to create spaces for healing, resilience, and transformation — ensuring families feel supported, informed, and empowered.
Claire Ernst, JD 
Advocacy
Claire Ernst is a government affairs professional who specializes in healthcare policy. She is currently the Director of Government Relations and Public Policy at Hooper, Lundy, and Bookman, a law firm that practices exclusively healthcare law. In 2023, Claire’s talents and achievements earned her recognition by Modern Healthcare, which included her in its list of the Top 25 Emerging Leaders for her significant contributions in the area of healthcare policy. Claire received her law degree form Suffolk University and a Bachelors from Franklin & Marshall College.
Sara Daly, LCSW-C
Education Chair
Sara Daly is a licensed clinical social worker in Baltimore City, Maryland. She obtained her bachelor’s degree from The University of Maryland in College Park, and later her Master’s in Social Work from The University of Michigan. Sara has focused her practice on perinatal mental health for over 10 years, in both hospital- and therapy- settings. In 2015 Sara founded a private therapy practice focused on perinatal mental health, and also launched the Baltimore Perinatal Mental Health Professional Study Group – which has helped build community among professionals in the area, while also facilitating continued collaborative growth and learning related to perinatal mental health. Sara currently provides specialized perinatal mental health therapy services at the Johns Hopkins Reproductive Mental Health Center.
Chana Johnson, LCPC
Outreach
Chana Johnson is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and founder of Aspire Counseling and Wellness in Owings Mills, Maryland. Certified in the treatment of depression and mood disorders (CCTP) and perinatal mental health (PMH-C), she specializes in helping women manage and heal from perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, perinatal loss, birth/NICU trauma, and infertility. She works extensively with couples who experience challenges due to these issues. In addition to being a certified member of the International Partnership for Perinatal Excellence (IPPE-C), she formerly served as the lead for the Maryland chapter of the Star Legacy Foundation, which focuses on education, advocacy, and support for women and families that have experienced a stillbirth, an area that is close to her heart as a stillbirth survivor.
Chana currently serves as Co-Chair of Outreach with the Maryland chapter of Postpartum Support International and is also a member of Vilomah, Inc., a nonprofit that focuses on support for bereaved moms. Chana holds a Master of Science degree in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling from Walden University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Morgan State University. She uses her physics background in her podcast called Relationship Physics, which helps to illustrate how the laws of physics apply to relationships. She also has a video series called 60 Seconds of Sanity, which focuses on a wide range of topics.
Chana is dedicated to helping women from diverse backgrounds find healing, peace, and develop healthy relationships throughout motherhood, and beyond.
Brijan Fellows 
Outreach
Brijan Fellows is a Licensed Certified Social Worker–Clinical and Certified Perinatal Mental Health provider with over 20years of experience in infant, family, and perinatal behavioral health. She serves as Program Director for the Center for Infant Study in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where she oversees a CARF-accredited outpatient mental health clinic serving very young children and their families across Maryland.
Endorsed as an Infant Mental Health Clinical Mentor (IMH-E®), Brijan specializes in early childhood and perinatal mental health, trauma-informed care, and reflective supervision. She provides clinical services, statewide consultation, and training to multidisciplinary professionals and is committed to strengthening equitable, relationship-based systems of care for pregnant and parenting families.
She holds her Perinatal Mental Health Certification through Postpartum Support International and is dedicated to advancing access to high-quality perinatal mental health services.
Brijan is also a proud mother of two sports-loving pre-teen boys and an adorable English Bulldog. Outside of her professional work, her family enjoys “glamping” adventures together in their RV, kayaking, and cheering on the Maryland Terps and Fighting Illini!
