Written by Dave Noodlez

3 months ago I was asked to have a meeting with founder of Labyrinth Arts Collective Elaine Mendez. We spoke briefly about an event she was planning 'SWAN Day' and agreed to meet at a local coffee shop to speak more.

When we met up I asked her "How is your honey?" referring to her husband Ray. The vibe got real serious and told me "Things have been better. He is dealing with a rare form of cancer." The cancer is Myeloma Cancer, a disease that affects his vertebrae which requires him to wear a white brace everyday. He is also required to go to treatment very often.

During the end of our meeting I asked Elaine "If there's any way we can support you and Labyrinth let me know." She responded with "Well I was talking to Ray and he thought it would be great if someone can liven up his brace. Maybe you can reach out to John Exit and other artists and see what you can do." I said "No problem." 

The minute I left our meeting I contacted John. It was during the early day and I assumed he was at work so I left a message. "Hey Exit. Give me a call when you get a chance. It's important"

John called me back not too long after and I explained the situation. He said "I don't know what to say. I am truly honored. I would love to help you make this happen."

Within a few days John and I reached out to several artists and got the confirmation that they would all be interested in taking part of #EmbraceTheBrace. One week later we were at his house. 

Watch the mini film below to see what happened.

I was honored to work with Exit and Elaine to bring this Ray's dream to life. We are grateful for all the artists that took the time to add their work to the brace. Shout out to PK, Kid, Kope, Sharpy, Braze, Scetz, Kwue Molly, Kasa, Sinus, Moody, Chris RWK, Mike Die and Ele Eme.

Ray is an inspiration to us at Stereotype Co. He is living proof that you can embrace your situation despite the circumstances. You truly don't know the war some people are facing on a day to day. 

We hope you can share this video with 1 person and tell them Don't Stop Dreaming'.

If you know someone that is dealing with something and you have a dream to help them contact us at info@stereotypeco.com. We would love to collaborate on something that can help change a life.