Taking the field in gold: Samo lacrosse raises awareness for pediatric cancer

Since the beginning of their 2019 season, the Samo boys’ varsity lacrosse team has partnered with Go4TheGoal in their “Lace Up” program, in which the players wear golden laces on their cleats in an effort to raise awareness and finance for young children battling cancer. Lace Up was kickstarted in 2011, and it continues to strive to bring to light the struggles of kids going through cancer. Lace Up is one of the couple programs that Go4TheGoal has set up—all of which are for pediatric cancer. Samo boys’ lacrosse has decided to partner with Lace Up in order to align with this goal. Besides just wearing the golden laces, these lacrosse boys have also been selling them. With each pair of laces costing $5 dollars and one hundred percent of proceeds donated to pediatric cancer research, Samo lacrosse has been able to raise $250 so far in just the initial stages of their season. As playoffs approach, they hope to raise this number and continue selling the golden laces. However, the wearing and selling of these golden laces is more than just a fundraiser to the team—it represents why they play sports in the first place. Athletics encapsulate the building of camaraderie and relationships with your teammates, and Spencer Wynn (’20) feels that raising awareness for pediatric cancer was a good way to build these connections and camaraderie with kids that need the support. “Our team wanted to participate in some sort of fundraising and we felt that helping kids with cancer have a better life would be the best thing, with most of us still being kids ourselves,” Wynn said. Like Wynn, the rest of the team, especially head coach Benjamin Keiser, are fully committed to wearing the golden laces for the duration of the season. “It’s a good cause. It’s one that is very personal to me. I was raised with the values of giving back to the community and causes. The Samohi Lacrosse Program is not just about learning to play the game, but also about teaching values that make good human beings,” Keiser said.To see the lacrosse team wear the golden laces, come to their next game on Wednesday, March 27 at Samo’s football field. More information on the foundation and its mission can be found at https://www.go4thegoal.org.