04 Jan Our Story of Brent’s Place

The not so big secret about starting your own business is this: it’s terrifying, horrifying, frustrating, rewarding and completely life changing.

When I started Mainstream I wasn’t sure where to begin. I called on several friends to start to establish ideas of where to take my business. It eventually led me to Brent’s Place, a safe haven for children recovering from cancer.

I had left my job on a Tuesday and got that phone call on Friday. It was my first job with my new business, and tears of joy crept down my cheeks.

After multiple meetings I got a sense of the great work Brent’s Place does. But it wasn’t until we volunteered to cook dinner there that we understood the magnitude of what they do. It allows the families and children a safe and clean place to live in the face of cancer.

The shoot was in October, and is still one of the best professional experiences of my life.

I met three families who told the story of their unbelievable strength through a horror most people only imagine. I met Aria, a spirit and a positive soul, whose positivity in the face of adversity changed my life forever. I met founders Don and Linda Eley and heard the story of their son Brent’s tragic battle with cancer and turned it into one of the most amazing and well run non profits I have ever seen.

It was my first job, but it was so much more. 

I was scared, but I learned I can do this. There were ups and downs, but in the end I knew this is what I wanted to do.