About Us

Our Mission

The mission of Hair & Hope is to not only meet the tangible financial need of providing cold caps to cancer patients going through chemotherapy but also to provide a source of encouragement, support and mentorship to the patients we are walking alongside as they begin their treatment journey.

Our History

In the summer of 2020, Courtney Carlstrom, Hair & Hope’s Founder, was a healthy 33-year-old elementary school teacher with a newborn and a toddler when she first felt a lump in her left breast. Since she had no family history of breast cancer, she was certain the lump was nothing serious but called her doctor for reassurance when it did not go away after a few weeks.

Courtney and her doctor were shocked to learn, after many rounds of tests, that she had Stage 2 breast cancer. Two years later, after six rounds of chemo, a double mastectomy, and 27 rounds of radiation, Courtney received the wonderful news that she was cancer free!

Courtney felt so lucky to have had a team of doctors who suggested cold capping during chemotherapy to prevent hair loss during her treatment. For Courtney, keeping her hair during her treatment allowed her to feel like herself as much as possible and gave her hope and control when so many other things in her life were out of her control.

The amount of support she received from her care team during my treatment was amazing. Even though she was not allowed to have any family or friends with her in the hospital, she never felt alone. The nurses, doctors and staff were always there to keep her company and make sure she felt supported.

Courtney’s doctors and nurses were the true inspiration to give back and start Hair & Hope as with her desire to help others going through chemotherapy keep their hair and regain a sense of control, just as she was able to.

Since its founding in 2022, Hair & Hope has been able to provide cold caps to 50+ patients.

Meet our Team

Courtney Carlstrom

Founder

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.

Shawon Carlstrom

Board Member

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.

Mary Claire Nicholson

Board Member

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 Longardner

Board Member

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.