Please let Anna Mendez know her son’s story saved my son’s life.
— OC Register reader

Daniel Mendez.

A kind brother, a loving son, an athlete, an honor roll student, avid football fan, a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, a boy scout who loved to camp and rock climb, loved to ski, snowboard and skateboard, guitar player, trumpet player and above all, a peace activist.  Smart, funny, kind. The world at his feet.

We gotta make change. It’s time for us as a people to start makin’ some changes. Let’s change the way we live, let’s change the way we eat, and let’s change the way we treat each other. You see, the old way wasn’t working, so it’s on us to do what we gotta do to survive.
— Tupac Shakur (a quote Daniel kept on his bedroom wall)

On May 1, 2009, after years of abuse and no longer able to withstand the ongoing torment of the bullying, after school on a sunny day in San Clemente California, Daniel Mendez is driven to ending his life.

He was 16 years old.

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