Giving back. Finding strength in difficult times. Inspiring others to use their voice to promote positive change. One woman does it all … and more.

Nicole Zwiercan, Mrs. USA Universe 2018 and a Registered Dental Hygienist who was recently named one of Chicago’s “Most Inspiring People” will discuss how to grow stronger from trials and celebrate triumphs at the 7th annual Lucy Hobbs Project Celebration. Join her Oct. 3-5 at The Blackstone, Chicago.

Earn 4 CE credits and celebrate women in dentistry! Register: https://www.regmadeeasy.com/be…/the-lucy-hobbs-project/2019/

As Mrs. USA Universe 2018, Nicole sets out to inspire people all over the world to celebrate their triumphs, and grow stronger from their trials. She was honored to represent the USA this past December in Cebu, Philippines at the 12th Annual Mrs. Universe Pageant, where she placed first Runner Up to Mrs. Universe 2018. She also won “Most Photogenic” and the “Humanitarian Award” for her work in the community out of the 88 countries that participated.

In 2016 Nicole was named Mrs. Illinois International and dedicated her year to breaking the stigmas that surround bullying. As a victim herself, of workplace bullying and harassment, she created a worldwide, multilingual campaign to raise awareness that #BullyingDoesNotDiscriminate. Through this campaign she also developed her own app “Kindness Crossing Borders” to further reach people universally. She won the “Overall Best Interview Award” out of 62 contestants from all over the world, also earning her a First Runner‐ Up finish for Mrs. International 2016. She was proud to have completed over 100 charitable appearances and days of service that year.

In 2015 Nicole created her nonprofit “Be Kind. Make a Difference” which is dedicated to inspiring kindness, inclusion and acceptance. After her daughter received a Cerebral Palsy diagnosis, this last March, her mission has never been more important to her. She truly believes that difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations.

Nicole is the author of the blog “It’s Simple. Be Kind” (www.itssimplebekind.com) which to date, has had over 65,000 visitors from all over the world. She uses this blog to show that we can acknowledge the storms we undoubtedly encounter in life, but more importantly, we should choose to celebrate the rainbows.

Nicole has an extensive professional dance background having danced in the AFL and NBA for the Chicago Bulls from 2001‐2010. Through those experiences, she’s become comfortable serving as a spokesperson and ambassador for many international companies all over the nation. She is a graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts and Art History. She also has earned a degree in Science and Dental Hygiene from Kennedy King & University of Illinois at Chicago: College of Dentistry in 2011.

She has been a practicing hygienist in both specialties of pediatric dentistry, as well as periodontics for the last eight years.

Most recently, Nicole was featured in the book “Beyond the Interview: A 52 Week Guide of Inspiration,” as one of the top interviews of the year from The Whitney Reynolds Show. She also was named one of Chicago’s “Most Inspiring People” by Voyage Chicago Magazine. Nicole currently is a reporter for the Comcast show Community Connection. Together with her family, Dr. Christopher Zwiercan, her son Cristiano (5) and their daughter Ashlynn (2), she hopes to not only be a voice, but a light for families that are navigating through the storms of diagnosis… and to show that it’s OK to have a different kind of perfect.