Bekah Jordan

Bekah Jordan is a writer, designer, educator, installation, and theatre artist who has a love for experimentation and a knack for not following the rules. So it follows suit that she received her cancer diagnosis on the day of final dress rehearsal for a show she was directing in 2013. After much deliberation, the oncology team decided it was a rare form of leukemia called CMML-2 (and of course, over 90% of patients diagnosed with CMML are male and 65+). She had a stem cell transplant (the only chance for cure) later that year at 25 y/o. Now, almost 5 years later, she is still in remission (!) but deals with many challenges including the unruly autoimmune disease GvHD caused by that life-saving transplant. She’s been blogging her experience since the beginning at spaceshipcoupe.blogspot.com, and deep down believes that her life is, indeed, a comedy.

Tara O’Donoghue

Tara truly tapped into a consistent yoga practice in 2009 when she was in the midst of a challenging time caregiving for a loved one who was battling cancer. Cultivating a consistent yoga practice during a challenging time in life helped her stay more grounded and at peace through ups, downs, transitions and whirlwinds of emotion. Through the past decade her yoga practice has ebbed and flowed to compliment a busy schedule racing bikes and running a small business while also helping her heal mentally from stress and anxiety, physically from injuries and emotionally from tragic grief when her husband passed away from cancer in 2016. Processing emotion through yoga combined with Yoga Therapy training led to the creation of Lov Yoga www.lov.yoga

Tara completed a 200hr Teacher Training through Colorado School of Yoga and a 500hr Teacher Training through Inner Peace Yoga Therapy. She believes that teachers are always learning and she has been studying for 3 years to become a certified Yoga Therapist by October 2021. Yoga Therapy involves using the practices of yoga postures, breathwork, meditation and other contemplative practices to balance the body, breath, mind and soul. Tara works with clients individually to help them integrate transformational routines and practices intentionally into their lives. She is also the yoga teacher/facilitator for the Dear Jack Foundation’s Breathe Now Retreats and a yoga teacher/consultant for First Descents. When Tara isn’t retreating in beautiful locations, she teaches the Breathe Series for AYA – Young Adult Cancer Survivors and their community. She also teaches online classes and provides yoga consulting for First Descents. This collection of yoga, breathwork, meditations, cancer specific functional therapy and self reflective practices is one of her favorite projects and she is excited to meet you virtually on the mat. Tara hopes that her classes help others feeling strong but soft both on the mat and in life. She is always growing through what she goes through, how about you?

Jean Rowe, LCSW, OSW-C, CJT

Jean Rowe, LCSW, OSW-C, CJT

Jean is a licensed clinical social worker whose background includes over 15 years in the oncology space, primarily working with young adults affected by breast cancer. At Cactus Cancer Society, she serves as guest faculty of several programs as a Certified Journal Therapist. Jean’s original programs include themes around reclaiming intimacy after cancer, addressing burnout and compassion fatigue, journal drop-ins to temper the triggers of everyday life and coping through the holidays. Grounded in all of them is the importance of self-care. She is honored to work with Cactus Cancer Society and all whom they serve. You can connect with Jean here or at jean@cactuscancer.org.

**Jean Rowe runs structured journal writing programs. Nothing in these program constitutes psychotherapy, nor do they establish a therapist-client relationship.**

Christina Kosyla

Christina Kosyla

Christina Kosyla is an educator, theatre artist, and accidental rare disease advocate. Her performance and directorial work has been seen in diverse venues such as the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Edinburgh, Scotland, and jazz festivals in Tuscany.  Since her diagnosis with a desmoid tumor in 2018, she has raised over $32,000 for the Desmoid Tumor Research Foundation. She chronicles her treatment and adventures on her blog and instagram account, Girl Meets Cancer. Christina lives in New Jersey with her dog, Daisy.

Marc Korobkin

Marc joined the Cactus Cancer Society board in 2018 and is excited to be involved in this groundbreaking organization. Marc has been a tireless advocate for improving the health care system and increasing support for patients and caregivers. He has extensive volunteer and leadership experience in the nonprofit sector, including over six years at the Center for Patient Partnerships at UW-Madison, an interdisciplinary program that trains graduate and professional students in patient advocacy. He has also been a caregiver for family members with serious illnesses, including his brother Bryan, who passed away in 2016 from complications of a stem cell transplant. Marc received his JD from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2009 and lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In his free time he enjoys hiking and nature photography.

Sarah Goodell

Sarah is thrilled to have the opportunity to contribute to this amazing organization. She is a Senior Analyst in Digital Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility at Mead Johnson Nutrition where she works on a variety of projects, from managing social media campaigns to coordinating CSR efforts. Prior to her work here, she was a Program Manager at Cancer and Careers, where she ran a number of their programs as well as coordinated social media and PR initiatives. During her years working in the cancer community, she became very passionate about supporting survivors, particularly young adults, and helping them thrive after a diagnosis. Sarah is originally from Minneapolis but currently lives in Chicago, and is an avid rollerblader, yogi, and brunch enthusiast.

Kelly Miragliotta

Kelly Miragliotta – Board Member, Event Chair

Kelly is a Hodgkin’s Lymphoma survivor who was first diagnosed at the age of 20 while attending Rutgers University. She beat it and it came back the last semester of her senior year. Kelly balanced treatment and school while still being able to graduate on time with a B.A. in Economics and a B.A. in Communication. After graduation, she continued treatment until she was in remission. Kelly now leads the Customer Success team at FeeX, a growing FinTech startup. In Kelly’s free time, she enjoys running, being outdoors, and experiencing local craft beer.

As Kelly went through her cancer journey, she realized that she was the youngest person in each infusion room. She also never found any age-appropriate support groups or resources on how to navigate life after cancer. Kelly decided that she wanted to make sure young adults had age-appropriate resources during and after cancer. She found Lacuna Loft and looks forward to continuing growing this amazing organization. Kelly participates in Lacuna Loft’s programs, is part of the Young Adult Cancer Survivor Advisory Board, and is the Event Chair for the annual gala.

Shelly Whitsitt

Shelly works as a director of research and strategy at a qualitative market research and creative agency, Fusion Hill. She started her career in marketing at a start-up in South America and her first experience with qualitative research was with women farmers in India. At Fusion Hill, she enjoys turning rich, qualitative research into key insights that help clients achieve their business goals. Shelly has a BA in Psychology and Spanish and an MBA with a concentration in Marketing from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Key experiences in her MBA program include a yearlong project on Product Innovation in Subsistence Marketplaces, and serving as CEO of a student-run 501(c)(3). Shelly enjoys spending time with family and friends, TV binging on Netflix, or getting cozy with a book. She loves traveling and exploring new cultures, trying new and different foods, and being active outdoors.

Lauren Creel, MSW, MPH

Lauren was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma at the age of 23.  After treatment, she was inspired to use her personal cancer experience to help other patients, so she returned to academia, earning a Master’s in Public Health and a Master’s in Social Work from San Diego State University.  A few years after her treatment ended, she got involved with the AYA cancer community through a wilderness retreat.  The interaction with others her age who had gone through cancer helped her to process her own experiences and begin the healing process.  She is passionate about cancer survivorship, specifically issues of isolation, resilience, fear of recurrence, and advocacy for AYAs with cancer which is why she is thrilled to be at Cactus Cancer Society.

Prior to her time at Cactus Cancer Society, Lauren spent five years working as a Program Administrator at City of Hope National Medical Center, building comprehensive programs for cancer survivors and academic programs for physicians.  She has developed curricula and educational materials for cancer survivors and AYA cancer patients, facilitated City of Hope’s cancer survivorship support group, and has presented extensively on fear of cancer recurrence and spirituality in cancer survivorship.  In addition to her work at City of Hope, Lauren has worked with The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Stupid Cancer, UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, and Still Waters Cancer Retreat to provide psychosocial support and to advocate for the needs of cancer patients and survivors. 

Aerial Donovan

Aerial Donovan is the Co-Founder and Chief Program Officer (CPO) at Cactus Cancer Society. Her passion is helping the young adult cancer community forge connections, guiding them to self-advocate, and discover resources that are accessible without barriers to entry. Her knowledge and expertise in community building and organizing + executing digital events has helped Cactus Cancer Society’s programming flourish. Prior to becoming CPO, she was VP of Programs at GRYT Health and volunteered with organizations such as Stupid Cancer, Imerman’s Angels, Dear Jack Foundation, and Lacuna Loft. She continues to lead the Young Adult Cancer Advisory Board at Cactus Cancer Society.