Courtney grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. She married her high school sweetheart, Shawon, and is now the mother to two wonderful boys, Henry and Theo, and one beautiful daughter Isla. In 2020, Courtney received the shocking diagnosis that she had Stage 2 breast cancer. Thanks to the recommendation of her care team, Courtney used the DigniCap cold capping system during her 6 rounds of chemotherapy to help her prevent hair loss during her treatment. Her personal cancer journey and experience cold capping led her to found Hair & Hope in 2022 as a way to help break down any financial barriers patients may experience when making the decision about whether or not to include cold capping as a part of their own personal treatment.

Courtney is an educator by training and has been a teacher in the Chicago Public School system and surrounding community since 2009. Over the years she has taught preschool, kindergarten and fourth grade and she is currently a fifth grade teacher in the Skokie Public School system. 

After Courtney completed her treatment, Shawon founded Hair & Hope with Courtney to give back to others and show their appreciation and gratitude to everyone that helped take care of Courtney during her journey. Born and raised in Downers Grove, Shawon now calls Chicago home with his beautiful wife, Courtney, and their two amazing sons and daughter. From his earliest days, Shawon has been a devoted Cubs fan, a passion that stems from being named after the legendary Cubs shortstop, Shawon Dunston. Shawon graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. 

Claire and Courtney have been best friends for 32 years. When Courtney was diagnosed with cancer in the middle of the Covid pandemic, one of the only things Claire could do was organize support for Courtney’s treatment journey. During that time Claire saw first hand how willing people are to help when someone is facing the battle of their life, and she is so proud of the amazing work Hair & Hope continues in the same spirit of Courtney’s friends and family’s generosity. Claire is also a lifelong resident of Downers Grove and enjoys spending time outside with her husband and two sons. Claire is a lawyer by trade but much prefers time outside the courtroom with friends! 

Jenny is originally from La Grange Park, Illinois. In 2017, Jenny was diagnosed with HER2+ breast cancer. She was 36, teaching 3rd grade, and had a 14 month old daughter. Plans of expanding their family was put to a halt when Jenny had to go through 6 months of an aggressive chemotherapy treatment. Jenny told her team of doctors that she had 3 goals she wanted to achieve despite this serious diagnosis. She wanted to continue to teach through treatments, expand their family, and cold cap. Her doctors were on board and allowed her to cap during her treatments. Jenny's husband and best friend knew they needed to do what they could to make cold capping successful for Jenny, so they went to all her treatments to manage her cold caps.

Cold capping made Jenny's all around health and emotional stability stay strong throughout her treatment. She also had many breast cancer survivors support and carry her throughout some of her darkest days. Each of those women gave Jenny hope that she would make it through the cancer nightmare and continue the rest of her life with her family. She thoroughly enjoys giving back to women going through a cancer diagnosis. Jenny currently lives in Elmhurst, Illinois with her husband and two daughters, and teaches 3rd grade. 

Tatiana Cristina Rojas is a Breast Cancer Nurse Navigator (BCNN) and community advocate

specializing in breast health. She guides patients from initial diagnosis through survivorship, providing education, advocacy, and compassionate support to ensure high-quality, patient-centered care. Her work also includes leading community outreach initiatives, coordinating educational and

survivorship events, fundraising for breast cancer patient support, and partnering with the American Cancer Society for the Making Strides Walk.

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Advertising from the University of Florida and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from RUSH University.

With over six years of experience in breast health at Advocate Health Care, Tatiana has supported patients in both surgical services and, most recently, as a BCNN at the Creticos Cancer Center at Illinois Masonic Medical Center.

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Tatiana combines clinical expertise with strong communication skills and a deep commitment to service, extending her impact through volunteer leadership with her church, Girl Scouts, and most recently as a board member of Hair & Hope.