The tragic events of that day would ultimately take her father. But through the shock and grief that followed, Genesis always remembered the images of the first responders who leapt into action to help people they didn’t even know. She knew from that day that she was called to serve, just like them.

When she was only 16, she was trained as a nurse-assistant, and entered the workforce a year later. By 19, she became an EMT in New York City. In 2016, she and her new husband, a fellow EMT, moved to Texas to start their own family.

But when her son, Ashton, was diagnosed with Leukemia in November of 2021, everything changed. His new treatment regimen at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas meant multiple appointments a week traveling 27 miles each way. The time and costs needed to make this happen were significant. But as Genesis has said, this is not just Ashton’s fight.

As someone whose instinct is to help, to do, to act, undergoing her son’s Leukemia treatment at Cook Children’s has been especially difficult for Genesis. 4-year-old Ashton is immunocompromised, so the family has often been relegated to the house to protect him from disease. In order to take him to his appointments, Genesis has had to leave her job, and Ashton’s dad works countless hours as a deputy sheriff to make ends meet for his family.

Even though Genesis is the one driving Ashton to treatment, it can feel like she’s had to take a backseat. “I’ve worked since I was 17-years-old,” Genesis told Compass to Care, “and as a mom not being able to help provide, it’s been challenging, especially with how expensive gas is these days.”

Both of their roles look very different right now, but the philosophy to “keep pushing through” is the same. Ashton, who is curious beyond his years, asks questions every step of the way of his appointments, constantly wondering “What’s next?” What’s next is clear for Genesis. It’s to fight for Ashton as a family, by getting through each and every treatment together until the cancer is gone. Compass to Care helps by providing gas funds every trip so that getting to the hospital is never a concern, but as always it’s the family’s determination that leads the way.

“We have to sacrifice things and change regularly around Ashton’s diagnosis at the moment,” said Genesis, “but it’s slowly getting easier and easier. To parents whose children are newly diagnosed I would tell them that the sun does come out after the storm. Just push through.”

Click here to help kids like Ashton fight cancer!

“Lo que más me gusta de mi hija Cynthia es que aun en estos momentos tan difíciles siempre tiene una sonrisa en la cara.

Lo más difícil de viajar para que ella reciba su tratamiento, es no poderla ayudar cuando se pone a llorar a causa de los efectos secundarios de la quimio.

Compass to care nos ayudado mucho para que ella siga en su tratamiento porque desde que ella fue diagnosticada yo su madre dejé de trabajar para estar al lado de mi hija y dejé de generar ingresos y compass to care me ayudó a darle un tratamiento adecuado sin importar lo lejos que estuviera de casa. 

A todos los donantes desdiria mil gracias por ser parte del soporte de las familia que lo necesitan como yo, gracias por ayudar a las familias que están peleando contra el cáncer. 

A los padres que están pasando por un diagnóstico como el de nosotros les diría que por mas duro que sea el diagnóstico no pierdan la fe y que no dejen de ser positivos, no dejemos de creer que los milagros existen.”  

“What I like most about Cynthia is that even in these difficult times she always has a smile on her face.  

The most difficult part about traveling for Cynthia’s treatment is not being able to help when the secondary effects of chemotherapy make her cry.

Compass to Care really helped us in continuing her treatment because when she was diagnosed, I left work to be at my daughter’s side, and I stopped earning an income. Compass to Care helped me to give her adequate treatment no matter how far it was from home.

To all of the donors I would say a big thanks for supporting all the families that needed it like mine did. Thank you for helping families that are fighting cancer.  

To the parents that are going through a diagnosis like ours, I would say that as hard as the diagnosis is, don’t lose faith and don’t stop being positive. Don’t quit believing that miracles exist.”

Click here to help kids like Cynthia fight cancer!

Since November, Cam has been fighting a Soft Tissue Sarcoma at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital. On each day of radiation treatment, he and his mom, Tracy, travel 55 miles to Chicago. As expenses increase, these high costs of gas and parking have become a significant burden to bear. Compass to Care has helped Cam’s family manage these costs so he can get the best treatment available to fight his cancer.

As he braved a rigorous radiation schedule, sewing and drawing became important outlets for Cam. His mom, Tracy, is his thrift store shopping companion. In addition, Tracy supports her son at radiation appointments, with surgery to remove his tumor, and in all of his artistic endeavors. Cam, just like every one of our amazing kids, is so much more than cancer. Artist, animal lover, son, friend; these are just some of the words to describe Cam. With Compass to Care’s help, Cam can work on getting back to who he truly is.

Click here to help kids like Cam fight cancer!

Jack grew up in Lombard and is the youngest of 6 children. He is a recent graduate of the University of Illinois and working as a Commercial Banking Associate at CIBC in Chicago. These days you can find Jack in Wrigleyville spending his free time golfing, walking on the lakefront, and going to Cubs games with friends.

Jack joined the Associate Board a year ago and we couldn’t be happier that given all the challenges over the past year and a half that he still decided to take on a role on the Associate Board in the middle of a pandemic!

Jack works with fellow board members Peter Moreno and Adrian Abonce at CIBC. Because our current Associate Board members are so passionate with their roles at Compass to Care, Jack was excited to get involved and start contributing and making a difference for families with children affected by childhood cancer.

During the time we were only hosting virtual events, Jack jumped right in to plan a Virtual Trivia Night in May! He says, “My favorite thing currently is the teamwork and collaboration that goes into planning each event. Everyone is more than willing to dedicate their time for the good of the organization, and it shines through in some of the success we have had, even during COVID. After COVID, I am looking forward to being able to see everyone and meet in-person given the fact I joined in the middle of the Pandemic.”

When asked about his hopes for the future of Compass to Care he responded, “I hope Compass to Care can achieve larger visibility as a significant Organization as it relates to childhood and family wellness. Given the nobility of the cause, I believe that there is a huge possibility for growth for the organization, which will only allow for more families to have their financial burdens lifted.”

Jack believes in going all-in and we are grateful for his dedication and talents. He is excited to bring a positive attitude and a mission-driven focus to all initiatives. “I can leverage my current network to build a larger following for the Organization throughout Chicago and beyond.”

“Nathaniel fell sick in March and was diagnosed with Leukemia in April 2020. This came as a very big shock to us, not knowing the next step.” Josephine, Nathaniel’s mom shared with us about the start of her son’s cancer journey.

Nathaniel is a 13-year-old young man that lives in New York with his mother and younger brother, Noel. Nathaniel is the quiet type while Noel is “cheeky… always up to something!” They are a close family, and the boys are always there for one another, even though they are quite different. The brothers love playing video games together, especially racing games, strategy games, and Minecraft. They miss the life they had before cancer and before COVID-19. Most of all they miss going to the movies. Because of treatment Nathaniel is not able to get his COVID-19 vaccine which is required by the movie theater, but treatment is a bigger priority than the movies right now.

After his cancer diagnosis, Nathaniel’s medical team began working on a treatment plan to get him into remission. That, however is just the first step in his journey for a cure. After he is in remission, he will need to undergo a bone marrow transplant. His brother Noel, at just 8 years old, has agreed to be Nathaniel’s bone marrow transplant donor!

Things have been hard over the past year. Nathaniel’s mom is the sole caregiver and not able to work while caring for Nathaniel. This makes the miles to get Nathaniel to treatment almost impossible. Thanks to the generous support of our donors, Compass to Care has stepped in and provided 32 trips to cancer treatment to support Nathaniel and his family.

“Compass to Care has made a very huge difference to us getting to his appointments, I do not know what we would have done without your help.”

Here’s to 2022 bringing a cancer remission, an opportunity to return to the movies, and more time for brothers to play video games together.

Our Program Manager, Celeste Hall, coordinates travel and lodging for our families traveling to and from the hospital for their child’s cancer treatment. She arranged travel for 264 families last year, up from 135 families the previous year. She says the best part of assisting more families is, “Getting to help more kids while working with new hospital staff and problem solving (transportation) in different areas” 

Celeste has an incredible ability to manage all of our children, care for them with compassion, and is an expert onboarding new families into the Compass to Care family. Traveling can be stressful, especially to the hospital for your child’s cancer treatment, and she uses her calm and professional approach to ease the stress for these moms and dads. She speaks Spanish and English and works closely with hospital staff to translate travel arrangements in other languages. She says some elements of her role are similar from one family to the next, while travel in different areas in the United States offers unique challenges.

Families traveling for their child’s cancer treatment in New York experience different challenges then families traveling in North Dakota. A child with cancer often has a weakened immune system and it’s especially important to provide them with a safe and clean mode of transportation. Celeste says utilizing Uber in big cities, like New York city, provides a clean and efficient travel solution that brings our families door to door. For South Dakota families traveling long distances to treatment, lodging assistance is most impactful. Whatever the challenge, Celeste will ensure every child in our program gets to where they need, on time every time, to ensure they have the best chance at reaching remission.

“I am honored for the opportunity to work with such inspiring heroes, kids in cancer treatment, and their amazing caregivers.”

We are excited to introduce Compass to Care’s new Chief Operations Officer, Danielle Villari Swets.

Danielle has an established career working for non-profit organizations that support children and adults impacted by cancer. She brings a unique combination of expertise in event planning and program management. As Senior Manager of Patient Navigation at American Cancer Society, she led the Illinois team of Patient Navigators while partnering with hospital staff on evidence-based interventions and reducing barriers to care for patients. She has executed a variety of corporate and fundraising events ranging from galas to large scale walks and runs. 

Danielle grew up and currently resides in Oak Park with her husband, Mark, and her son, Kristopher. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Indiana University. She was responsible for curating hospital programming in her early career. Some highlights include bringing clowns and art programming to pediatric patients in the hospital, and massage therapy and coffee to their parents.

Danielle is a childhood cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with AML leukemia in high school and then twenty years later, with Head & Neck Cancer. She believes she would not be here today without the support of her family, community, and also the kindness of strangers. She knows not everyone receives an abundance of support during cancer treatment, and is dedicated to providing relevant programs and services to others in need. She is grateful for the opportunity to give back to others through Compass to Care.

We would like to than the 500+ runners, and people participating from 12 States, for joining us for this special morning to race to fight childhood cancer.  The weather in Park Ridge was absolutely perfect as we came together to raise awareness and funding for children with cancer.

Your support makes it possible to give families, who are also struggling financially, relief from the burden of travel expenses while giving their children access to hope.

We hope you will continue to follow Compass to Care as we fund access to childhood cancer treatment- and maybe, just maybe, we will be able to bring back the BUBBLE FUN RUN next year!!! Our fingers are crossed!

Our annual 5K wouldn’t be possible with all our amazing sponsors! They have continued to support this neighborhood event and Compass to Care over the past 6 years!

Thank you, again, for helping children fight cancer, one trip at a time.

Thank you to our 2021 Sponsors