‘Champion’ beats cancer ...bringing out J’ouvert ‘brand’

The Queen’s Royal College (QRC) student who is both bandleader and designer told Newsday at the launch of the band at Soho on the Avenue last Thursday night: “It is such a surreal moment to be bringing out a J’ouvert band for Carnival 2017. Our family has been involved in Carnival for around four decades I myself started playing J’ouvert at the young age of three-years-old with my parents of course, so we decided we could bring out a J’ouvert band because of all that experience.” Callender expects 400 masqueraders to play with his band and promises to deliver such a memorable experience that all of them will come back year after year. At the launch, while Callender gave his remarks, the song “Champion” by DJ Bravo was played in the background.

Callender recalled his cancer experience.

He was diagnosed with B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma manifested from a tumour in his upper left lung that collapsed in 2011.

He said: “I had just written SEA (Secondary Entrance Assessment) and was waiting for results when my family and I learnt about it when I was about 11-years-old and personally I took it better than my parents. I was just cool and collected but my parents were only crying.” Callender also said he knew the magnitude of the implications of his illness, because he had an aunt who passed away in 2008 after losing her battle with cancer.

He spent a year in and out of the Wendy Fitzwilliam Paediatric Hospital, missing a considerable amount of time from his new school, QRC.

He said: “In the hospital it was so relaxing because of the Just Because Foundation who made me feel at home and that kind of took away all the nervousness with it. Also, my parents and family were there to support me.” During that year Callender had eight cycles of chemotherapy, each cycle lasting five days out of every 23 days. There he was hooked up to a machine that administered the chemotherapy to him intravenously for 24 hours a day.

His mother Jan-Michelle Callender said: “We got a lot of support from the now principal David Simon who even before Brandon registered for QRC, he was informed of the situation and he was very welcoming from day one.” The form five student has another brother, Nicholas, who is also attending QRC, in Lower Six.

Callender is also involved in steelpan and football.

Jan-Michelle stated that part proceed from the band will go towards paediatric cancer care.

“That is something that is very near and dear to us and what we feel very passionate about, and to let people know the kind of work that people are doing in the field of cancer.

Our experience in the hospital was fantastic.” Callender said the experience has made him stronger.

“In certain situation before, what I will get flustered with, I don’t get flustered with them any more because the cancer has shown me there is a lot more to worry about than just little things in life.

“I have even told some of my friends don’t sweat the small stuff because there are bigger things in life that you have to do and have to deal with.” He is thankful for all the family support he has in realising his dream in bringing out his J’ouvert brand that will be based at 21 Cawnpore Street in St James.

Other cancer survivors are also welcome in the band.