LAFAYETTE PARISH — Local comic shop owner, Dan Bordeaux has been able to create what he describes as his own sanctuary after facing a set of unforeseen obstacles.
Bordeaux describes himself as an “outsider” “nerd” who was always looking for an outlet where he could connect with like minded people. That’s one of the main reasons he opened up a comic shop, Sanctuary Comics.
“I love coming in here, even when I’m tired I love coming in here and being able to hang out with my customers who are also my friends,” Bordeaux explains.
But before he was lining his shelves with the latest adventures of Earth’s mightiest heroes, Bordeaux was embarking on his own adventure of stand-up comedy.
“After high school, I started doing stand up comedy. I did that for 10, almost 11 years, I toured nationally doing comic cons and nerd cons and sci fi cons, that was fun” Bordeaux says.
Unfortunately, during his eleventh year as a comedian, Bordeaux explains he was hit with an unexpected tragedy, “I got hit by a car and broke my back and I developed anxiety and PTSD after that so it made getting up on stage and doing comedy a lot harder”.
Bordeaux lost his ability to walk, bathe himself and had to move back in with his father. But he says that it was during this period that he discovered a new talent of his: writing.
“I used to wake up in the middle of the night, have a dream and write a whole bit about it”
Bordeaux would shift his path to a career in journalism but after working for a few local papers and television stations, he was among those that lost their job as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
That moment served as what Bordeaux described as “rock bottom” but also necessary as it motivated him to start his own business, “My friends and family supported me and told me, you know this stuff, you can do this” Bordeaux says.
Today, Bordeaux is two years into running his own business and says he’s found himself faced with an insatiable high. “I feel like this is the best high because I’ve built something”.
Bordeaux built a sanctuary.
