Wear Your Heart On Your Insulated Can Sleeves

Wear your heart on your insulated can sleeves

Wini Marquez joined us here at Perfect Imprints Creative Marketing in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, with the hopes of inspiring and encouraging others. Just shy of 6 months ago, she lost her son, Delaney, to congestive heart failure. She has decided to not only wear her heart on her sleeve for us during this interview, but rather, daily on an insulated can sleeve. This is her story:

A Heart to Heart

Wini came forth today to inspire others that are grieving a loss, and to encourage them to spread their loved ones’ significance. Significance became a keyword throughout the interview, for Wini was adamant her sons’ passing would mean something more. Not just to family and friends, but to everyone. 

April 15, 2020, just after the Covid-19 pandemic started, Delaney was diagnosed with congestive heart failure–a chronic heart condition in which the heart does not pump blood as thoroughly as it should. At that moment, his heart ejection rate was 10 percent. 

“The doctors came in expecting to see a dead man,” Wini explained. 

Wini also went on to say that nobody would have ever known that he was having complications, “He [Delaney] was always so full of life.” 

At the time of discovery, Delaney was expected to have just 4 to 6 months remaining. Physicians confirmed that this type of heart failure, and the condition that he was in, only gets progressively worse over time and cannot be reversed.

Fighting through Covid restrictions, Delaney made himself well-acquainted within the hospital. There were many times Wini was not allowed to accompany Delaney to his doctor’s visits, which concerned her. Wini detailed that she had already been through struggles of heart complications and cancer (with both Delaney’s maternal and paternal grandparents), so she knew what questions to ask physicians. Delaney, on the other hand, was new to the entire process. 

As restrictions eased, so did her distress because she was now able to be a supportive arm in his time of need. However, she soon after got a better understanding of the severity of his condition.

Delaney led a very active lifestyle. His whole life consisted of sports, cooking, friend/family gatherings, and above all…surfing. 

Throughout his sickness, he was faced with many opinionated physicians who pushed ideas they thought were helpful. Delaney began to question what would be worth investing his precious time into. Finally, one doctor, in particular, stood in front of him and told him that if he wanted to get back into the water to surf again, if he wanted to maintain an active lifestyle, a defibrillator would be his best option. 

The initial thought of having a foreign object implanted in his chest scared him.

For those who don’t know, to be a candidate for a defibrillator, you have to meet certain criteria. After months of self-reflection, changed habits, and many doctors visits, Delaney finally came to terms with receiving a defibrillator. 

October of 2020, Delaney underwent his surgery. An Electrocardiologist calibrated Delaneys’ defibrillator to fit his lifestyle and natural heart rhythm–he could finally have a chance at surfing again. A month after, he bought himself a new surfboard–just as a little inspiration to get back in the water. 

4 months later, his heart ejection rate raised from 10 percent to 40! His odds were looking favorable, as was his optimism on life. He had a whole new perspective on what it meant to be living.

Unfortunately, come July 6, 2021, Delaney took his final breaths. Be that as it may, Delaney’s lust for life did not end there.

Even with an excellent support system, Wini says that there was always a struggle. Behind the smiles they shared hid denial and pain. Denial of Delaneys’ condition and heartache in knowing they had to take bits of joy in every moment. She now translates that, though, in saying that you never know when your last moment will be. You should always live your life how Delaney lived his–courageous and ambitious. By the sounds of it, I don’t think he had one regret.

After Delaneys’ passing, rather than letting the loss consume her, Wini knew she had to do something. She knew that her son deserved more. So, she decided to celebrate his life. After all, he did have a life worth commemorating. His drive and ambition pushed him past his predicted 4 to 6 months. Within his “over” life expectancy, he continued to form connections, bond with the people he cared about, and continued to touch the hearts of those who surrounded him.

Again, comes the word significance. When asked how Wini coped with the loss of her son, she answered that she was looking for a form of significance. It wasn’t fair that her son passed away at the young age of 40. When she had already lost so much, she needed something more. She needed his passing to mean something to other people outside of close friends and family. 

Her idea stemmed from wanting to keep his spirit alive–she knew she wanted to continue his passion for the water and drive for overcoming challenges. In other words, “To give to other people what he shared–helping them overcome fears of the water, especially!”

Creating The Celebration of Life

While planning Delaneys’ celebration of life, Wini kept circling back to the word significance. She didn’t want just a gathering where people would come to look at photos, no. She wanted people to be actively involved. With Delaneys’ obvious love for the water, she finally decided to have a memorial paddle out.

Again, though, it didn’t quite have the magnitude she was looking for to fill the void of losing her child. Wini reached out to her graphic design friends to create a beautifully designed t-shirt with a picture of Delaney holding a surfboard on it.

Within the creation timeline, she ran into a man named Rick Weeks, founder of Autism Surfs. Wini seized her moment and immediately knew that this was exactly the type of cause Delaney would want to support. After speaking with Rick Weeks, Wini finalized the t-shirt design. Together, they named his celebration of life “Waves for Days.”

The importance of the celebration was to do good for people. With that being said, Wini decided that every t-shirt purchase would be donated to the Autism Surfs Foundation.

Her shirts were used to raise awareness and funds for a cause Delaney would support. His “Waves for Days” celebration raised over a thousand dollars for Autism Surfs.

Autism Surfs is coming up on its 10th anniversary, and due to Winis’ continuous involvement, they are dedicating events to Delaney. Wini expressed with great joy that the non for profit was just one more way of keeping things significant.

Wearing Her Heart On An Insulated Can Sleeve

“When you’re going to have a celebration of life, you want the people there to take with them something more than a piece of paper. [Wini incorporated koozies…] In an effort to have something at the celebration of life that friends could take with them, and would be a more constant reminder of Delaney, and that they could have Delaney more visible on a day to day basis.”

During Winis’ interview, you could see in the bottom right corner, an insulated can sleeve on her daily Coca-Cola. It’s much more than just a koozie or insulated can sleeve, though…It’s a memory to carry at work, outside, or traveling anywhere else! Wini expressed her feeling towards handing out just an obituary at Delaneys’ passing. She believed it wasn’t quite lively enough to match his spirit. 

“Delaney was young…He was only 40 years old, so giving his friends a piece of paper with an obituary on it didn’t seem right.”

Wini came to Perfect Imprints shortly after Delaneys’ passing to have koozies made. “Young people are always going to have a soda, a water bottle…A cold beverage of their choice. Adult or otherwise,” which is what made this the perfect gift to hand out in memory of Delaney.

Wini was amazed by the attendance of his celebration. She was most surprised with the number of friends and family members that would, soon after, send her photos of the koozies and t-shirts at happy events. She said that if Delaney wasn’t already well-traveled, he is now! Delaney is still remembered throughout happy events, which again, circles back to the significance.

A Constant Reminder

With a determination such as Winis’, she doesn’t just stop there. Of course, she considered the needs of others when picking memorabilia for Delaneys’ loved ones. Here are the two additional imprinted products she gave out to friends and family:

1. Keychains

Delaneys’ wishes were to be cremated. A select few friends and family members wanted to keep some of his ashes. Along with the velvet pouch full of ashes, she added a key chain. 

Not only this, but she gave the engraved keychains to young family members and Delaneys’ disk golf friends. She said that even if they didn’t have keys to put them on, they could use them as zipper pulls for bags or jackets.

Custom Keychain

2. Sky Lanterns:

Sky lanterns fill the night with beautiful, illuminated candles. Spiritually, this symbolizes the passing of a soul onto its next realm. Wini bought 40 to represent the 40 years Delaney spent on this earth. In remembrance of Delaney, 40 of his loved ones took home a personalized lantern to celebrate more privately. They could connect with him by writing a well-wish on the lantern before releasing it.

Annual Celebrations

When asked if she anticipates an annual celebration of life, Wini says she intends to celebrate Delaney in more ways than one. Throughout his final stages, he has overcome so much. Therefore, he should be recognized, but a celebration of life can come in many forms. She plans to celebrate his birthdays, “exit date”, and even the times she just misses him a little extra. 

“There are so many times that you can do something like that or just have your koozie with you.”

Coping A Loss

Ones’ strength can only get them so far when grieving the loss of a loved one. 

“I call it reentry, reentry into normalcy. After something like this, it’s not easy. So, if a koozie gets you through it, or a keychain, or a t-shirt, or music, or a lantern, or you know, anything at all…Do it. Do it. Whatever you think will help you survive this.” 

Above all else, Wini suggests keeping your friends and family close. She advises not to be afraid to cry and not to be above asking for help. Choking back tears, she explains that there were days she struggled to get out of bed or even eat. In order to continue the memory of your loved one, you’ve got to take care of yourself.

Through strength, Wini has come to us, incredibly vulnerable, to share her story. Her reasoning was to inspire and encourage those who are grieving a loss. And to let you know that you, too, are not alone.

For other true, inspiring stories and creative marketing solutions that create awareness, be sure to visit Perfectimprints.com.

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