Advocating for Claudia

Hi, my name is Melinda, and I am fundraising for my best friend, Claudia.

As I started my career working with victims of crime, I found myself working alongside a woman who opened my eyes to this new career in advocacy. She was more confident than I had ever been, more assertive than I could ever have dreamed. I was in awe of the strong woman she

knew she was a fearless advocate who had taught me so much.

Claudia and I began working together in 1998 for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Unit. She provided support for those who were at their most vulnerable. Claudia encouraged those who felt powerless. She helped victims find their voice and strength as they

found themselves in a position no one ever wanted to be in. Claudia sat with mothers who lost their children to gun violence. She empowered women who were survivors of domestic violence.

Throughout the years, Claudia continued advocating and has worked with victims of human trafficking and working with victims in vulnerable populations. She is a skillful advocate.

On September 15, 2010, Claudia was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in her left breast, metastasizing to her lungs. Her world was turned upside down, not only financially but emotionally. Due to a lack of medical insurance, her chemotherapy treatments did not begin until

December 2010. The side effects were challenging.

Claudia then had to endure radiation, and amid all that chaos, Claudia had a stroke on June 11, 2011. Claudia worked through her treatments until the stroke forced her to go to rehabilitation for physical, occupational, and speech therapy.

Due to her diagnosis, Claudia had to take Herceptin (a form of chemo) every three weeks for maintenance, although Claudia had received clean scans in January 2012. As Claudia began to recover from all that had transpired in the last couple of years, she found out that the aftermath of cancer was probably as harrowing or even more than the treatments themselves.

During her cancer treatments, Claudia also had a few surgeries, one involving her lymph nodes being removed, and in time Claudia developed lymphedema. Claudia also suffered from neuropathy in her hands and feet. The cancer had not only taken her physical and emotional strength but also caused her financial hardship. Claudia was healing and recovering, and on her way, she thought of becoming independent again when the other shoe fell.

Claudia was diagnosed with another type of breast cancer on July 9, 2014; this time, it was on her right breast. Claudia was diagnosed with triple negative stage 3, which dictates that she had a high probability of being positive for the BRAC1 breast cancer gene. Which she is! This only

brought more complications. Once again, Claudia embarked on the same journey of chemo, radiation, and more surgeries.

Unfortunately, On September 1, 2022, Claudia found a lump on her right breast posterior to her chest wall and quickly recognized what it was. She was diagnosed with stage 4 triple-negative breast cancer. In the last few weeks, she has found herself in the fight of her life.

The cancer has metastasized, is all over her chest wall and left breast, and has spread to the lymph nodes. The doctors need to treat this aggressively.

It is not lost on me that she recovered from her second battle with cancer and healed with the help of massage therapists who worked with her as she recovered from the effects of cancer treatment. After her second cancer diagnosis, Claudia changed her career path and became self-employed as a massage therapist. She is still helping people heal but has now expanded her work to help them heal physically.

In 2000 Claudia became a mom to the cutest baby boy, Nathan. She is a single mom who raised a smart, strong, kind, and handsome young man. She worked hard to provide him with the best education.

Nathan was only ten years old when his mother was first diagnosed with breast cancer. Claudia’s biggest fear was that she would not be able to see her son grow into the man he is today. Nathan is a recent graduate of the University of San Diego. They have an extraordinary bond, and she wants to fight this terrible disease for him and herself.

Claudia needs our help to fight cancer not once, but three times is too much for one person to handle.

The financial, emotional, and physical burden that occurs not only during the active treatment but also in the aftermath of cancer is unbearable.

Claudia has family and friends that love her, but she lives alone. She needs financial assistance to cover her rent, medical bills, transportation, recovery time after surgery and any other necessity that comes with losing her freedom that only cancer can take from her.

It will take a village to help Claudia, who has in the past helped many people selflessly. Please send this page to as many people as you know. Thank you.