Kid Cancer Survivor Designs Custom Air Jordans, Restores Your Faith in Humanity Posted by Max Pete on 07/26/13 | Filed under Opinion, Style, Sneakers, General Awesomeness

In this day and age, all you see and hear on the news is about which country is on the brink of war, the economic crisis and other information that drives fear into your everyday life. I’m tired of hearing nothing but bad news, that’s why I decided to write about positive and inspiring stories that are overlooked by the mainstream media.

When reading Yahoo Sports, I came across a powerful story about 14-year-old Cole Johanson who was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of Lymphoma when he was 9-years-old. After Cole was diagnosed, he told his dad that when this was all over, he was going to do something special. Cole needed to be treated with intense chemotherapy right away. Fortunately, the treatment worked, and Cole started to feel better each day. Cole was cancer-free by the time his Make-A-Wish day came which included a very special visit by Chris Paul that was filmed by ESPN.



Cole was hospitalized and treated at the Doernbecher Children's Hospital at the Oregon Health and Science University, and was picked to be apart of the Doerbecher Freestyle program, which let the kids design a pair of Nike shoes. The organizers of the program knew Cole’s love for basketball, so they gave him a pair of 2010 Air Jordans for him to design.

"When I first made them," he said, "I knew it was a Retro 3 and there would be some demand. I didn't expect so much reaction.”

Cole decided to give the Air Jordans a unique color so he chose a brilliant red, which is the only Air Jordans with that color. He also wrote "strength" and "courage" on the insoles, and had laser designs of spaghetti and chocolate imprinted into the pull-tabs.



"I used a cool design but kept the varsity red – the core of Jordan," Cole said Tuesday. "I decided to leave it as it is but I made a subtle change that doesn't take over the shoe." Incredibly, the shoes were a HUGE hit. They soon could be found on eBay for over $1,000, and last season Bulls guard Nate Robinson wore Cole’s shoe in two games.

Now that Cole is about to enter his freshman year of high school, his shoe is the first every Doernbecher shoe that will ever get re-released. For all you sneaker-heads, Cole’s shoes can be found for about $160 retail. Don’t feel so bad about breaking out your wallet, because the proceeds will go to the Dorenbecher Children’s Hospital Foundation.

Cole is not your average 14-year-old about to enter high school. He is a courageous cancer survivor, and now a fashionable shoe designer. His story is not only inspiring, but also gives hope to any and all that are dealt with a bad hand, but are determined to overcome any obstacle put in their path. Hope that made your Friday just a little bit better, or even restored your faith in humanity.

Shout out to Yahoo Sports for the spot. If anyone comes across any inspiring stories they would like me to cover, feel free to hit me on Twitter @Max_Pete. Thanks for reading!

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