Illa Cox: Mother, Mentor, Medical Provider
Photos by Kelly Marie Photography
No one achieves greatness by themselves. Without the gentle guidance of mentors for the upcoming generations, our communities would fall apart, toppling like rootless trees. We all depend on those people who selflessly help others to become the best versions of themselves. Illa Cox has dedicated her life to being a mentor who lifts people up, both metaphorically as a teacher, business owner and a nurse practitioner, and also literally, as a life-long dancer and cheerleading coach.
During her childhood in Texas, Illa threw herself completely into the art of dance; from jazz to drill team, she found it a beautiful outlet for expression and connection. “I was a dancer my whole life,” Illa said. She was accepted into the elite Statue of Liberty Drill Team, getting to spend two weeks in New York City and perform for the president of the United States, and she also received a full ride college scholarship. “Jazz was my favorite; you get to express yourself with the music,” Illa said, describing how she loved attention to detail, accenting the little parts of the songs that were most often overlooked. “Through dance, I learned that I could do things by putting a lot of hard work into them,” she said. That hard work laid the foundation for the grit and tenacity she has relied on throughout her life, from mothering four children to opening her own business.
After Illa met her husband and they moved to California, she decided to pursue her nursing degree. “It crosses over. I just loved helping people,” Illa said. “I loved being around people; I loved to listen to their stories.” Her husband was her greatest supporter, encouraging her along the way. She found her experience with dance translated very well to her work as a nurse practitioner; her years of cultivating a comfortable and organic stage presence helped her put patients at ease as she worked in emergency departments. She fell in love with her job in healthcare in the same way she fell in love with dance as a girl. “I love it because I never feel like I’m working,” she said. Her favorite part was educating patients, explaining to them the “why” behind what she was doing. “Knowledge is power,” Illa said. “If I educate you, you have the power to educate somebody else.” She went on to pursue her doctorate of nursing practice, which empowered her to teach at the university level and also open her own independent practice, Cox Medical Aesthetics in Lodi. The aesthetics medical spa is set to open its new location in summer 2026, where Illa will also be teaching aesthetics to certified nurses in addition to her full-time teaching at Stanislaus State University. “I love what I do,” Illa said. “I love seeing the lightbulbs go off.”
While many would consider working shifts at multiple emergency departments, teaching full time and running a medical spa a tightly packed schedule, Illa still prioritizes making time to give back to the community and nourish her love of dancing through coaching cheerleading at Jim Elliot Christian School. “Coaching cheerleading keeps me balanced,” she said. “I coach cheerleading because I love helping.” She organizes all the choreography and often does the stunting along with her students, working alongside them to show them how it’s done. “I show them by example,” she said. “If I can achieve it, so can you, and I’ll help you achieve it.” She emphasizes cheerfulness over complaint, helping her girls learn the leadership skills and hard work that helped Illa herself get so far in life. “My favorite part is being a mentor and a leader and showing them that working hard helps you be successful,” she affirmed.
Despite her impressive accomplishments, Illa approaches those around her with the kindness of a mentor and the humility of a life-long learner. “I’m only one chapter ahead of you,” she tells her students, helping put them at ease when they enter her capstone seminar class. They walk in her door as students, and at the end of the year, they exit her classroom as medical providers. She approaches her patients with the same humility, whether in the emergency room or in her aesthetics office. Illa calls it “approaching a person from the inside out,” saying, “I listen first. I want to enrich their lives as much as they enrich mine.” Illa does indeed enrich the life of her community, whether it’s by mentoring high school girls and teaching them the value of hard work and leadership or educating the next generation of nurse practitioners. “I wanted to be a person who made a change in the world,” Illa said, speaking of the different choices that led her to where she is today. And if you ask her family, her students or her patients, they’ll be the first to tell you: she has definitely succeeded.
