Take a walk down Kings Highway and they’re there.
Take a walk to one of the schools and look at the sidewalk and they’re there.
They’re everywhere in the borough and they’re spreading throughout South Jersey — and even up to Happy Valley.
And it’s all making one local family extremely happy.
Neon shoelaces offered through the Go4TheGoal Foundation — a 501©3 non-profit charitable organization based in Merchantville — are the must-have sporting accessory this year for Haddonfield athletic teams.
The sale of the laces benefit a local family and their son, Jason Garstkiewicz, a seventh-grade Haddonfield Middle School student, who was diagnosed with bone cancer shortly before Christmas.
An avid sports enthusiast and athlete, Garstkiewicz plays basketball, football and lacrosse, so when he was first diagnosed, a group of parents from his seventh-grade lacrosse team reached out to Go4theGoal Foundation to order a few hundred neon yellow shoelaces to distribute to kids around town to show both support for him and his family — and to raise awareness about pediatric cancer in the community.
The laces went on sale earlier this month at the schools in the borough.
So far, more than 5,000 pairs have been sold, and the orders are still piling in, said Jean-Anne McMahon of the foundation.
At the varsity level, the Haddonfield Memorial High School boys’ and girls’ basketball teams are wearing the laces for the 2012 season.
Every single boys traveling team in Haddonfield is wearing the laces, she said, as well as teams in Moorestown, Mt. Laurel, Haddon Township, Monroe Township, Willingboro and Harrison Township.
Even at Penn State University, the laces can be seen on some finely tuned athletes. The university men’s varsity baseball team is wearing the neon laces for Jason this season.
The laces are also making their way down to the shore, as the Ocean City girls’ traveling basketball team has decided to don the specialized gear for their upcoming season as well.
The Penn State University intramural lacrosse field hockey team will also sport the laces for their upcoming season.
“The numbers just keep growing,” McMahon said. “So many spring sports teams and leagues are also planning to ‘Lace Up.’”
Go4theGoal’s neon yellow shoelaces are on sale for $3 per pair at many Haddonfield retailers, including Haddonfield Running Company and HerSport.
Proceeds will benefit both Jason and his family and the Go4theGoal Foundation.
The laces are also on sale at the Go4TheGoal Foundation website at www.go4thegoal.org/shop.
